Naruto: Uncharted Chronicles
by AlphaDelta1001
Summary: Naruto felt he had no purpose in life; he was alone, parentless, and filled with sadness. But then, he read a book. A book that would change his life, and propel him on an epic adventure. That book was called: Icha Icha. DISCONTINUED
1. Prologue

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_Prologue_

Four years old and already questioning his disappointment of a life, an exhausted and pained Naruto slowly trudged back home to his rundown, second story apartment on the edge of the village, hands in his pockets and an upset look on his face as he attempted to avoid the stares of those around him.

Dragging his feet, the blonde shrugged his shoulders and ignored the murmured comments and insults thrown his way. Having put up with these, as well as other far worse abuses and ridicules for some time, somewhat left a rather deep impression of hurt, sadness, and mistrust in his personality. But rather then let the responses to these feelings bubble to the surface, Naruto just dispensed with them, and went on his way.

Escaping into the empty side streets of the village, away from the main crowded roads and boulevards, the spiky haired blonde walked on for half-an-hour or more longer, not really caring where he went, so long as it was away from everybody else. Earlier today, he had tried and failed once again to make small talk with some of the local kids, asking them whether he could join them, but was once again chased away, or pretty much ignored.

He sighed at the recent memory.

"_This isn't fair,"_ the four-year-old boy mumbled to himself. "Why does everyone hate me so much? What did I do that was so bad?"

As much as he attempted to fathom the roots of his memories and self for the answers, he couldn't find any reason about himself for anyone to hate him so much. He always smiled and greeted others politely, didn't make fun of others, was kind to everyone, approached people unthreateningly, and he certainly didn't smell or look unappealing. But then again, taking a second glance at himself, he _**was**_ wearing second hand clothes; the white shirt with an orange spiral on the back, and casual blue shorts, with a side of dirt smudged and slight tears here and there, certainly weren't awful at all. After some consideration, Naruto figured that his clothes weren't at all offensive enough to cause displeasure and spite towards him for.

His mind further wandered on like the path he walked on.

"_Don't look at me…"_

"_Go away…"_

"_Just leave…"_

"_Demon!"_

"_MONSTER!"_

These were some of the words that echoed in his head. He scratched his head and tapped his stomach, as if trying to feel something out of place.

No extra limbs, horns, tails or anything. He was just a normal kid.

Naruto scrunched his face up in thought and displeasure.

"_But all the boys and girls from the playground don't want me to be around, and they don't call me a demon. They just don't want me to play with them, and the older ones just chase me away…"_

Needless to say, he was rather disgruntled. It was definitely something that can be heard from a upset and miserable kid of his age.

Kicking a stone lying on the path, he continued walking, repeating this step every time he reached the rock. He rubbed his right arm along his triceps, noting the scars and bruises on his arms. Naruto, knowing what these scars were made from, quickly returned his left hand to his pocket.

"Everyone just hates me…"

Kicking the rock one last time, Naruto turned down another road, this time certain where he wanted to go. His stomach was, at this point in the afternoon, growling at him. He was hungry.

Soon enough, after wandering the village streets for what seemed like hours, Naruto arrived at his destination. His spirits were lifted slightly, as well as his head, when he caught a whiff of the delicious concoctions being created beyond the threshold of _Ichiraku's Ramen Stand_. Smiling, the boy ducked underneath the banners of the bar, and with a spring in his step, took his usual seat at the bar, second seat from the left wall. Because of his small size, he literally climbed the stool like a ladder, and quietly got comfortable.

Still feeling a little bit down, Naruto, instead of immediately shouting an order of his usual Miso Ramen to 'Old-Man' Teuchi behind the counter, just sat there quietly for a bit, playing with his fingers as he thought about the day before hand. He was still puzzled and upset by why everyone resented and hated him so, but the more he thought about it, the more questions began swimming through his head. But then again, what was a four-year-old to do? Unlike a normal child's world, his was enormous. He had more weight on his shoulders then anyone else in his age group, and more burdens of loneliness and responsibilities.

While Naruto was continuing to sit in his own little world of thought, twiddling his thumbs tediously, the boy failed to notice the big man sitting a seat away from him to his right, writing in a little note book and every so often pausing to think quietly from his mumbled ranting; after which, the man would then grumble and rip out a page, or giggle and scribble something down. This, though seemed odd to Teuchi and Ayame working, didn't bother Naruto one bit, since he wasn't paying much attention.

It was only when the old man shouted out "Eureka!!!" did Naruto finally notice the white haired stranger in the corner. Upon setting his eyes on the elderly gentleman, the blonde was a little taken aback; a really tall man, around his fifties, with long, white and spiky hair, and had red lines painted below his eyes. The old man was also wearing faded green pants and t-shirt with a ninja's fishnet mesh, red arm guards, wooden sandals, a vest, and a strange forehead protector, not to mention carrying a huge scroll on his back, and a couple of pouches around his waist. Furthermore, this man was sitting, and eyeballing the little notebook he held in his hands rather too fondly for a normal person.

At first, Naruto thought that the man was a little strange, but who was he to question another man's personality. Then later, he saw that it was just another happy person enjoying himself and his blissful life. Naruto shared a small smile at the sight, before looking back at his hands, shot-down once again.

"_He's happy, and on his own… why am I the only one unhappy and on my own…"_

Things didn't go any better in Naruto's mind when the stranger at the end of the stand began sharing a nice descent conversation with the owner of the bar, like they were old friends.

Knowing that this 'too' happy environment was suffocating enough as it was, Naruto was about to leave, until he was stopped in his tracks by the stranger.

"Hey kiddo, what's the matter," the white-haired man asked, taking a seat beside the kid. "You look a little under the weather. Did something happen?"

"Oh uhh… n-nothing! Nothing happened, mister," Naruto replied quickly, wanting to leave as soon as possible. "I… I was just leaving…"

"Oh nonsense! The afternoon is still young, and all the restaurants and bars are still open! Relax and enjoy yourself!" the old-man exclaimed. He paused just a bit to see the uncertain and cautious look on the boy's face. The white haired hermit grinned. "Ah, don't worry. I won't bite. The name's Jiraiya: Toad Sage of Mount Myōbokuzan and former ninja of the Hidden Leaf Village. Perhaps you've heard of me!"

Naruto just stared at him. After a minute or so, without seeing a change of expression or pace in the boy's observations, the toad Sage got the hint that this boy hadn't heard of him, and quickly tried to break pace from this awkward moment.

Clearing his throat, he continued. "So, kid, what's your name?"

The blonde hesitated for a moment, not quite trusting this surprisingly energetic man. But after a few seconds of thought, he figured that no harm would come from just mentioning his name. "M-My name is Naruto… Naruto Uzumaki!"

"Naruto, aye!" Jiraiya parroted with his grin widening. "Nice to meet yah!"

Naruto smiled a small smile, and merely nodded back, before passively returning to staring at the desk in front of him. Seeing the lack of a lively response from the boy, Jiraiya immediately deduced something was wrong. He craned his head a little to get a better look at the downed look on the boy's face. For a ninja well versed in experience, he knew that look well.

The old man smiled and patted the kid on the back. "Hey, cheer up. What, did someone make fun of you that's got you so down?"

"I-It's nothing," Naruto replied, facing away. "I… I don't want to be any trouble…"

"Neh… come on. I've got time on my hands!" Jiraiya exclaimed, thumbing himself in the chest in emphasis. "I have another hundred years ahead of me before death himself decides to come after me, and even then he's going to have a hard time trying to get at my soul!"

Naruto looked up at him oddly for a moment, but then after seeing his grin and confidence shining in his eyes, couldn't help but snicker slightly at the old man's antics. This made Jiraiya's grin widen all the more, and he elbowed the by lightly in encouragement.

"Yeah! There we go! See… 'A smile on a face makes the whole world brighter'!" the old hermit quoted. "Now, tell me. What's been going on with yah?"

A frown quickly donned on his face, Naruto looked back at his hands and twiddled his fingers. Taking a deep breath, he finally got up the courage to talk to this stranger. He didn't know why, but he felt that he could trust this old codger.

"Well… I… I've had it pretty rough…" the blonde said in a low voice, closing his eyes and lowering his head. "Everybody hates me… and I don't know why. B-But… they call me a monster… and stuff. And nobody in this village wants to be near me… or even look at me…." He wiped his brow, showing that he wanted to hide away his depressing memories, as if rub them back down. "Y-You wouldn't understand…"

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow at this, his thoughts troubled by this boy's predicament. He couldn't fully comprehend what kind of torment this boy was going through, or wonder why the boy was picked on for something he resembled nothing alike. That was until he suddenly recognized the kid's name, and where he had heard it from. He mentally stabbed himself for not recognizing him earlier.

The force of the shock the hermit was hit with didn't show on the surface, and he did a good job of hiding it. Instead, he patted himself on the back, wishing himself _good luck_, before smiling down at the boy, and in so doing, giving Naruto a reassuring pat on the back.

"I want to try though," Jiraiya said, Naruto looking back up at him in response. "It's hard to explain, but you might get the gist of it later. Just… try to look for a light; there's always a path way leading to a brighter side to _any_ situation, no matter how grim or dark it may be." Reaching into the pouch he had on his back, the old man fumbled around for something. Grinning triumphantly, he pulled out what looked to be a collection of four pocket books, tied together by a belt. He then handed it to the by with a smile. "Here… I'm sure this will help yah understand, kiddo…"

Naruto, blinking in puzzlement, curiously and cautiously took the books from the old man, and looked down at them. He looked upon the title of the first book, _**Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi**_.

He looked up at the smiling old timer. "W-Why… did you give me these…?"

Jiraiya grinned at him and gave him the peace sign with his right hand in a cool and okay gesture. "Read the first book. Once you do, come see me at the West Gate on Friday, I'll be leaving the village then for the Land of Grass. Tell me what you learned from that story, and what you made of the character's aspirations and goals. Two days pass very quickly till Friday. Think of it as a little challenge for yah."

Staring at the man for a moment or so, Naruto then smiled happily for the first time today and nodded affirmatively. As young as he was, he wouldn't dare pass off a challenge like this.

"Okay! Thanks old-man!" Naruto exclaimed, getting off of his seat and dashing out of the bar. "I'm going to read it all tonight!" was heard as he ran down the dark, medium crowded street.

Jiraiya's tick-mark throbbed at the boy's address. "Hey! It's Jiraiya, kid! JIRAIYA! J-I-R-U… or is it A? Ugh… forget it…" The old man slumped on the counter and rested his head on his arm. He huffed out a breath.

"It's hard to get people interested in anything I do… even kids…"

For a few seconds, he sat there in silence. That was before a certain thing clicked in his head. He stood up straight all of a sudden, bumping the counter, rattling plates and drawing the manager's attention.

"OH NO! THAT BUNDLE I GAVE HIM HAD MY ICHA-ICHA POCKET BOOK COPIES!"

* * *

_**That very next day…**_

_**Noon…**_

Tears brimmed Naruto's eyes as he read the conclusion to the fantastic story the old hermit had written, and lent to him last night. For a boy, this was definitely a highly realistic fantasy, and it had everything he ever wanted in a story.

Lying flat on his stomach on his one bedroom apartment's bed, after hours of reading, finally came to the end of a wonderful tale. Sniffing, Naruto wiped his eyes clear and turned the page to the back, where he saw a mug shot of the author, in his younger years, grinning at the cameraman.

Naruto smiled at the photo, catching wind of the scribbled note the author, Jiraiya had left under the photo. _"This story was inspired by a formal pupil of mine, and I am grateful to him…"_ was what the young boy read, before closing the book and letting out a sigh. He placed his forehead to the cover of the book, praising the magnificence of the tale, then set it aside and rolled onto his back.

Fascinated and awe struck by the sheer impressive magnitude, Naruto then began thinking, and dreaming about ne day becoming like the main character from the book. The man, the warrior, the hero from the book, possessed all the qualities he admired; determination, courage, kindness, and especially the will to never give up. Naruto let out a sigh, envisioning himself as becoming that very same warrior.

"_And… it's my name…"_

Rolling over again, Naruto was about to get up. It was then he spotted the rest of the books the author had written. Blinking, the blonde looked up the stack of three, and he deduced from their similar titles that it was a series of some sort.

"_Icha-Icha Paradise… Icha-Icha Violence… and Icha-Icha: Make-Out Strap," _Naruto read, shrugging, and picking up what he presumed was the first of the series. _"If these are as good as the __**Tale of a Gutsy Ninja,**_ _I've got to get his autograph…"_

On his stomach, on his bed, Naruto opened to the first page, and began reading…

Later that night, when almost everyone in the local neighborhood surrounding Naruto's home had gone to sleep, in the deafly silence, there emerged a scream of admiration and utter joy. The yell was so loud, people thought that they were either being invaded, or someone had just been murdered…

"**THIS BOOK IS AMAZING!"**

* * *

_**Friday night…**_

Jiraiya stood patiently by the West Gate leading out of Konohagakure, arms folded and tapping his foot rhythmically on the ground. He was both anxious and worried, wondering how the kid would react to his book… not to mention the other ones if he read them. If the young lad had, then he was in place for a right good scolding by the boy. However, he was hoping the kid would show up with a positive response.

Knowing the nature of the kid underneath the dexterity he saw at the ramen stand, the old hermit knew that Naruto would have come up with some sort of answer.

A couple of hours after the sun had set; Jiraiya was still waiting for the would-be blonde to show up. It was when he was half-considering leaving a clone of himself to wait in his stead while he went to go and get himself a drink, he soon spotted the recognizable silhouette of said boy running towards him from up the road. Within seconds, Naruto was in front of him, panting, and holding the stack of four pocket books up towards the old hermit. A grin on his face, the spiky haired boy bowed to him.

"Thanks old-man!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly. Jiraiya blanched at this, but figured scolding the boy would be un-cool, and instead took the books from him. He didn't notice that the boy had a back-pack on him till after he took the books.

"Your welcome, kiddo," Jiraiya replied. "I suppose you enjoyed the story, neh?"

Naruto nodded.

"I liked the tale very much. The adventure, the reasons, and the message… I can really… understand what the character is going through, and how he must feel. Even though he was always hurt, and knocked down, he… he always got back up, and kept pushing forward. It… it makes me want to be like him… to walk in his footsteps."

Jiraiya listened intently with folded arms and a flare of interest as the boy spoke. As he listened, the blonde looked around at his surroundings, putting emphasis on the village of Konohagakure.

"The ninja in the story… he encountered a lot of hardships in his life. Despite all those things, being hurt for showing kindness, and being hurt by those who hate him, and with whom he fights, he still cherished everything and everyone around him. I… believe I can accept my life, because I can understand the pain he must feel." Naruto smiled and looked back up at the white haired hermit. "I want to be that man!"

Jiraiya nodded. "I guess that's your answer then?"

Naruto nodded affirmatively.

"Well that just about sums up my work for the week. Changing the world little by little…" Jiraiya exclaimed, pocketing the books the boy had returned to him. "Like the character in this story, I myself have found a purpose in life. I believe that I can change the world by writing my books, and giving people hope through them. You could call it _**my**_ destiny, but in spite of that, I believe that destiny can be changed, as it is not set within any boundaries. There are literally infinite possibilities and roads to walk down. All you have to do is choose the right one…"

The boy stared up at the old man as he shared with him this little truth. When done, Jiraiya let out a sigh and stretched his arms.

"Well, I'd better be heading off to Kusagakure," Jiraiya said. But before heading off anywhere, he gestured towards the backpack Naruto had on him. "What's with the bag? You going somewhere… or have you got something else in there for poor old me?" The sweetness in his tone in the last question was easily fake.

Naruto shook his head.

"I'm coming with you, Ji-sama!" he exclaimed.

"Huh?"

"I want to go with you," Naruto repeated. Dropping to his knees, he bowed to the frog hermit, who was staring down at the boy gob-smacked and speechless. "Please… I humbly wish to become your student, Jiraiya-sama…"

Stammering, Jiraiya looked around to see if anyone was watching. Seeing no one, the old man looked back down at Naruto, trying to force out a response. "Ahh… ugh… uhh…"

"Please…" Naruto looked up with pleading eyes. "You've inspired me to become like the Naruto from the book… your book! I want to become strong like him, so that I can prove my worth! I want to become a ninja like you!"

"Listen kid…" Jiraiya began, taking in a few deep breaths to steady himself. Sighing, he looked into the boys eyes. "It's very dangerous out there. I know you mean well, but trust me, if I was to take you from this village, I'll be catching hell from a lot of the big players up top, especially from the old guy sitting at the big desk wearing the funny hat." He stopped. It was then a thought came to mind and he looked up in wonder. "That reminds me; I haven't seen or spoken to sensei in a while. I wonder if he likes the _Icha Icha Gold Edition_ novels I sent him as a birthday present last ye- I'm getting off topic! The point is kid… I… I… uh… I can't take you as my apprentice. I'm sorry."

"Please, Ji-sama! Please! You are the first person other then Mr. Teuchi and Ayame-nii-chan to ever show me kindness, or even look at me! I want to go out and see the world and to learn from you!" Naruto begged. "I want to leave this village for a while and see the world out there, outside of these walls, outside of this cage! I may not be worth it, worthy, or show any promises of a true genius, but I want to try! I want to try and become strong, so I can help and defend others! I want to see the world from your eyes, Jiraiya-sama!"

Jiraiya eyed the boy as tears strung Naruto's eyes and threatened to break. Sighing, he rubbed the back of his lowered head and murmured a little, a small smile sprouting on his lips.

"Since when did _**I**_ ever follow the rules…" he muttered, briefly looking back on his younger days, "Okay then… fair enough." He looked back up at Naruto, grinning. "I guess I can take you on, Naruto Uzumaki! I am a Sannin after all; the fat-cats upstairs are bound to trust me with the responsibility of babysitting a tike like you for a little while! Big whoop if they don't!"

Naruto beamed up at the old man, a smile appearing on his face.

"From this day forth, kid; I am your master and you are my pupil!" Jiraiya stated, jabbing himself in the chest with his thumb. "I'm gonna teach yah the way of living hard kid, and enjoying it. I promise you, you will be a ninja in no time!"

"Really?!" Naruto excitedly shouted, getting up on his hands and knees.

"You betcha!"

"Oh, thank you, Ji-sama! I promise I will not let you down!"

Getting to their feet and full-height, Jiraiya turned and headed-off, with Naruto quick on his heels. Sneaking past the guards, they then started down the road, a road Naruto felt would be the beginning of a grand adventure.

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	2. The Start of a Great Journey

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_Start of a Great Journey_

For the next five to six years of his life, Naruto Uzumaki, container of the Nine-Tailed Fox, would train under the watchful eyes of the Legendary Toad Sannin Jiraiya, following his precise instructions, absorbing all of his teachings, and enduring all of the training schedules thrown at him, as well as undergoing training exercises of his own making. And this all started from day one, since Naruto and Jiraiya arrived at the Land of Grass.

Jiraiya followed through with the same training and endurance exercises he went through that started him down the path of a shinobi. He immediately began piling this up onto his student, wanting him to learn, and learn it quickly through the hard way. He figured the sooner Naruto learned of the pros and cons of rigorous training, the smoother the boy would be able to apply himself. Twenty-four hour strenuous exercises: push-ups, sit-ups, squats, running, weights and all that was focused on in the first few months, added with a few bonuses and extras. The first step was to train the body to endure.

Once that was over, the Frog Hermit then went on with the Ninja Academy basics, with Naruto giving him his full and utmost attention, as well as being given 'homework', so to speak, in the forms of serious reading time and physical training. He pushed Naruto to the limits, and the boy took it, determined to achieve the best. He trained so much, that on more then one occasion, he passed out from exhaustion. Hand-seals, tree-climbing, linguistic skills, geography, mathematics, chakra exercises, almost everything on paper were put into general practice, and Naruto practiced a lot. At night, when Jiraiya was asleep, Naruto would go out to the nearest clearing of wherever they were camping, and train until dawn.

Within a year and a half, Naruto had mastered all of the basics, and was then given the opportunity to try out his own jutsu. For making it as far as he had, and for learning and progressing at a phenomenal rate, way above normal academy standards, Naruto was given a pick from Jiraiya's list of techniques. The boy quickly found he had an affinity in the Clone Jutsu, and the Mass Shadow Clone Jutsu Technique Jiraiya conveniently had on hand. He also picked a number of wind release techniques corresponding with his wind chakra, and fire techniques. Furthermore, the strong-headed boy also decided t increase his speed, knowing that the faster he was and the better his technique was a big advantage in combat.

Along with learning to master these techniques, Naruto would further devote himself to learning more about close-quarter combat, martial arts involving various types of weapons, and shuriken jutsu. He would train often using a number of weapons and as much as he could to strengthen his body, and in hilarious encounters would often challenge Jiraiya to a sparring match whenever he was busy; whether taking a bath, eating or spying on girls. It was after the fortieth time caught off guard Jiraiya set up the rule of not attacking him during 'research' hour.

Within the next couple of years, Naruto would move between training and traveling with Jiraiya. In this time, it turned out to be quite eventful for the pair. Since leaving the Village Hidden in the Leaves, Naruto and Jiraiya had traveled across the entire Land of Fire, and into other foreign nations such as the Land of Lightning, the Land of Water, the Land of Wind (much to the chagrin of both of them due to the heat), the Land of Earth, the Land of Grass and much more. They visited quite a lot of shinobi villages too, including Kirigakure, Sunagakure, Kumogakure and Takigakure, where Naruto would take some time off to go look around and learn some new things from the ninjas and martial artists living in those villages, and Jiraiya would go and do more… 'Research.' For both of them, they met some very interesting people.

While in Sunagakure, Naruto met a boy named Gaara, who like him was also a jinchuriki host coping with harsh times. The two immediately became good friends with each other, opening a new door for the container of the One-Tailed Shukaku, and the two of them would often hang out at the playground or pull pranks on Gaara's older brother. They would walk and talk, tell stories, share jokes, steal Temari's panties from her drawer, get away with painting graffiti on the most unorthodox places, and eat Ramen together. Time seemed to fly by between them. Then, after a week or so, Naruto had to go, and he left Gaara with a promise he would see him again soon.

But Naruto's biggest challenge would move far beyond the scope of his training regime, and far beyond the care and teachings of his master. By the time Naruto had turned ten, Jiraiya felt that his student was ready to take on the world, literally. Having watched him progress so rapidly, and having coped in the heat of battle and in unbearable environments, the perverted hermit knew that it would soon be time to initiate his student with his greatest challenge yet.

* * *

_**Six Years after leaving Konoha…**_

_**Due West close to the Land of Lightning Borders… **_

"Okay, okay…fine! I owe you that much. But I'll pay you back later, Naruto… I swear I'm good for it!" Jiraiya replied hastily, trying to end this awkward conversation as quickly as possible.

"Yeah! Sure… whatever you say, 'perverted-hermit.' You always try to run off on all your debts, like gambling and who-gets-to-pay-the-bill after lunch and dinner! It always ends up with me paying… one way or another!" Naruto said a-matter-of-factly. "Geez, you're even worse than Baa-chan when it comes to taking money for granted."

"Hey! I resent that!"

"Oh yeah! Well as soon as we reach the next village, you will give me my ten-thousand ryo! I'm sick and tired of having to contribute my wallet to your problems; past, present and future," Naruto stated, hands in his pockets. "Last time, when you pulled your dine-and-dash trick on me, I ended up getting arrested!"

Apparently, the spiky-haired blonde boy had developed a real positive and hot-headed attitude towards his now long-term sensei. Of course, Jiraiya didn't mind this change of persona from the timid and shy Naruto, to the rogue and no-shit-taking form of Naruto at all and simply took it in stride, comparing him to the personality of the characters from his stories. Naruto had almost completely transformed himself into the character from his _**Tale of a Gutsy Ninja**_ novel, and he was looking great in the process.

Not only had Naruto grown significantly over the years, but he had also chosen a rather cool outfit to go with his new _him_. Aside from the spikier and longer blonde hair (resembling his father's) and the black head-band with the protector inscribed with the _Fox_ symbol on it, the boy also adorned a simple black singlet with orange track-pants combination, a red trench coat and a khaki ANBU vest armor to go over that, fastening it to him. He also had metal arm guards, leg weights covered by shin guards, black sandals, and a tanto (a combat blade resembling a small-katana like Sai's) sheathed on his lower back, along with a bandoleer of scrolls and kunai attached to his vest. He looked like a fearsome competitor, and was a shooing for Jonin status in appearance.

His skill and strength at this point however are unknown, a secret held between himself and his sensei, who, notably, remained relatively unchanged.

Bickering and talking animatedly as they walked down the dirt road, Naruto and Jiraiya eventually came to a crossroads in the middle of the small patch of forest they were traveling through, with a sign-post on the corner of the road indicating which direction leads where. Looking up, the pair read the sign, and looked in the different directions they could take.

Before any decision could be made as to which way they would go, Jiraiya turned and beamed down at his young apprentice, smiling.

"Well Naruto, I guess this is where we part ways for now…"

"Huh?" The boy was taken aback.

"You need to carry on your journey without me. I've got some business I gotta take care of down South…"

"Wait a minute! Hold on there!" Naruto shouted, pointing up at the Sannin accusingly. "Are you trying to cheat me out of what you owe me? UH-UH! You're not getting away that easily, Pervy Sage!"

"You idiot!" Jiraiya exclaimed, bonking him on the head. "Listen… this is all a part of your training! This next and final task I leave for you to handle… and I expect you to complete it…"

Naruto paused for a moment, looking up at the white haired old-man with curiosity rather than annoyance. The old hermit smiled down at him and patted him on the head, this time in sort-of encouragement.

"When you asked me to make you my apprentice, you said to me that you wanted to see the world through my eyes, and to walk in my footsteps. Well… this is where you really start walking in my footsteps. So far, your journey has consisted of me training you and teaching you how to survive. Well… now it's time to put that into practice." Taking the boy's shoulders in his hands, he nodded down at him affirmatively. "You need to experience this world first hand… on your own. I'm taking away any boundaries I have placed upon you and am allowing you to continue on freely, to go wherever you please. For the next year or two… what you do from here, is your call…"

Releasing him, Jiraiya thumped his student in the chest with a gentle fist, and started down the road behind him, smiling and saluting to the boy. "I'll see you when our paths meet in the Land of Fire, kiddo! Travel the lands, train hard, learn… and good luck!"

Just as Jiraiya was just over the ridge-line and nearly out of sight, Naruto suddenly snapped back into reality and shouted after him.

"HEY! PERVY SAGE! WHAT ABOUT MY TEN THOUSAND RYO!"

"What… sorry… can't hear yah! See yah around… Naruto!" The Sannin's voice echoed back from down the road. Soon enough, he was gone.

Naruto, sighing, folded his arms and sat in the middle of the cross-road, frowning and looking up towards the sky. Seeing as how hot and sunny it was getting at this point, the young shinobi brought out a Chinese Straw-hat out of nowhere, and fitted on, letting out a sigh and looking down at the ground in disappointment.

"Oh well… it's just you and me now, I guess," Naruto said, addressing the crystal necklace around his neck with two orange stones on either side of the aqua gemstone dangling on the chord.

"_**Speak for yourself, brat. You're not the one stuck in a necklace…"**_ the crystal growled back.

"_Come on, lighten up… at least now we won't have to endure sensei's perverted antics anymore!"_ Naruto replied in thought. _"…and get blamed for it…"_

"_**Look who's talking. You take right after the old wind-bag!" **_the voice stated.

"_Shhhh!"_ Naruto hushed, looking around worriedly as if someone was watching him. He had completely forgotten that he was sitting out in the middle of no where. _"I don't want anyone to find that out about me, Kyuu-chan! That would just be a stain on my reputation!"_

"_**Uh-huh… sure it is. You know… your thoughts aren't as innocent and clean as you claim them to be. Not after reading all the perverts adult novels…"**_

Blushing a bright red, Naruto pulled the straw-hat over his face a bit more, before getting to his feet and heading down the road, moving east. The voice, now recognizably girly, giggled and continued poking fun at him.

"_**Did I touch a ticklish nerve there, Naruto-kun?"**_

"_Please Kyuu-chan… I'm getting a bit uncomfortable…"_

"_**Adjusting emphasis on the tent in your…"**_

"_Shut up…"_

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	3. Run In

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_Run In_

_**Some week later…**_

Footsteps echoed from the surface of stone steps as a young, red-headed girl ran up a three-hundred foot climb towards what looked to be a deserted and run down Buddhist temple, situated in the middle of a hilly, ever-green forest.

Smiling, the girl paused for a moment when she reached the top of the stairs, beside the great archway that led onto the temple grounds. Dusting down the khaki jacket and blue pants she wore, and making sure the package over her shoulder was still there, then ran up into the chapel sized, oak constructed building. Ignoring the usual respect of removing shoes before entering a building, the girl briskly ran across the worn-down floor towards the other end, where another entrance hung wide-open. Coming to crouch at the far end of the altar, the girl quickly pried open a loose floorboard on the temple floor, and pulled out a small rucksack.

Inside, she drew a pot, a cooking grate, a bottle of water, and spark rocks. Putting them to the side, she then stashed her rucksack away, and soon to join the set items, a rack of recently caught fish. There were five in all, perfect for two people, but even better for this lone individual. She was quite pleased with catching this many.

"I'm eating well today!"

Licking her lips, the girl rubbed her hands together, and was about to gather up the gear to take outside and set up when she noticed something out of the corner of her eye.

Gasping in surprise, she turned to see the thing that had captured her attention. To her surprise, displeasure and discomfort, she saw an unidentifiable figure lying beside the altar not too far from where she was kneeling, straw hat lowered over his face and a large scroll laid down at his side. He was comfortably lying atop of some hay, strewn across the hardwood steps in a makeshift bed, and dusty robes bundled up into a pillow salvaged from around the room. A lazy ass on first glance, the young girl also noted his attire, red and orange adorned in a light brown combat vest.

She didn't notice him when she first rushed into the temple, on account of her familiarity with the place, and the fact that no one ever comes up here save for her. Seeing a random stranger making his stay here in the temple for the first time in ages, was quite a surprise to her.

Rising to her feet, the ten-year-old girl frowned and pointed at the short, dozing stranger.

"Hey! Who are you? What are you doing here?"

The stranger murmured and rolled over a bit, trying to ignore the loud noises coming from its source. This made the girl even more annoyed, clenching her fists and gritting her teeth, she huffed, irritated.

"Get out of here you peasant!"

Groaning, said 'bum' sat up slowly and removed the hat from his face. Letting out a sigh, the figure revealed himself to be a spiky haired blonde with whisker marks on his cheeks, and wearing a unregistered forehead protector. The revelation that he was a boy about the same age as her and not some older man came as yet another surprise to the red-haired girl.

"What… is it exercise session already, Baa-chan?" the boy groggily asked no one in particular, still dazed from his nightmare.

The girl growled and stepped forward, making rather animated hand gestures as she scolded the stranger.

"This is my place of residence! You have no right to be here! Please leave at once," the girl ordered.

However, in spite of her best efforts, the boy merely yawned and sat up completely, turning towards the source of the loud noises bombarding him. Placing his foot atop of a fallen temple relic lying on the floor, he stared stoically at the young girl standing just a few feet away. Upon inspecting the 'disturbance', the blonde deduced she was of no threat, and merely smiled at her.

"There was no one here when I arrived, so I decided to crash on the floor for a bit. Sorry," the boy, easily recognized as Naruto, said casually. "Since the resident owner is here now, I guess I'll address you then. You don't mind if I stay a while longer, do you…?"

"Yes! In fact I do mind!" the girl said, pointing at him. "Now this is the last time I'm going to say this! Get out!"

"Oh! Finally!" Naruto exclaimed, lying back down on his makeshift mattress. "I was wondering when you were going to stop. Good night…"

"I hope you mean good-bye…" the girl growled through clenched teeth. She was obviously fuming at this point.

"Nope." Naruto simply answered. "If this is your home, as you claim, then I would like to rent out this space."

Seeing as that this person wasn't going to budge through words alone, the girl then opted to try and physically get this boy to leave. She approached him, hastily reaching for the kunai she had at her belt, sheathed safely. However, before she got within striking range, the girl saw that the boy had even _**more**_ kunai sheathed into the belt he wore, and a sheathed tanto at his side, gripped securely in his hand. The boy looked like he was packed and ready for a fight, so the red-head thought better against the idea of trying to scare him away, and backed away.

Naruto smiled under the shade of his hat… visibly. "Good choice…"

Huffing, the girl stomped back over to her gear, gathered it up, and headed outside through the entrance from whence she'd come. She had to make a fire to cook her catch, and it was best to do it outside, away from the tender wood.

Naruto watched in interest and amusement as the strange and impatient girl knelt beside the tree close to the entrance of the building, dig up a small hole, set up some rocks around it, and gather various twigs, sticks and long grass, quietly mumbling about 'stupid boys', 'rude strangers', and surprisingly some other, rather inappropriate names Naruto would never had thought would spill from such a pretty young girl.

After setting up her fire pit, the red-head took the spark rocks from on top of her pot and started her fire.

As soon as she had set up her fish to cook, she breathed out and cast a glare at the ten-year-old boy lying inside the building. Seeing him still smirking away, she growled and looked back at her fish.

"Baka…"

* * *

_**Not too far from the temple…**_

A group of unknown figures scouting the coastlines of beach and cliffs along the northern part of the land lying between the Land of Lightning and the Land of Sound have stopped momentarily for a rest, and to thoroughly search the surrounding area for any sign of the quarry they were ordered to find. They knew full well that their superiors would not be pleased if they came back empty handed.

For a full month this group has been searching the north most countryside spanned out between the elemental nations, hunting down a very elusive target. After all, there weren't many villages, let alone high densities of a populace in _this_ land. And even so, the small amount of people living in this area was very uncooperative or wanted nothing to do with the business of a bunch of strangers.

A gust of wind blew across the grey wastelands, rustling the leafless trees and blowing small clouds of sand inland. The figures, most of which were dressed in khaki jumpsuits, sporting purple vests, and many of them wearing ski-mask like head gear with forehead protectors, can easily be identified as ninja. Judging from the various different symbols on their head plates and the gashes across them, show that they were once all from different nations with Shinobi Villages and had abandoned them long ago.

One of the ninja sitting on a fallen log shivered as the wind whipped through him. "Brrr… it's so cold out here. Why the hell are we searching through these dead lands? There's nothing here!"

"Dunno. This is where our team leader said that we should search… something about information he had gotten from a village doctor, two towns over…" one of his comrades nearby replied.

"I still don't get it. Why would our target be hanging around here? There's nothing… not even a village for miles…"

"It's smart thinking, if that's what you're implying," his comrade replied again, turning towards the shivering Chunin. "She knows that she has to stay away from densely populated areas, so to avoid being found by the authorities or by anyone familiar searching for her. The fact that our target has ran all the way out here means that she is trying to throw us off… but she slipped up when she went to nurse a accidental injury, in other words… medical assistance…"

"So a deep cut to her shoulder was a dead give away, huh… how convenient…"

"Either way… now that the doctor has given us her 'home address'… we can soon put this pathetic search to an end…"

The two of them, including a couple of the other rogue Chunins standing around, looked up towards their team leader.

Their Jonin leader was the most easily recognizable of the lot, as he was dressed differently, and clearly taller. Adorning a white cloak, hiding grey and white standard ANBU attire and plastic body-armor, as well as concealed weapons, and a straw-hat covering a wooden, chipped and poorly made mask that looked as though it was bark torn from the side of a tree and painted on in a terrifying eagle representation of a Hunter Nin mask, this man stood high above the rest of the group. He was about seven feet tall, very muscular, and seemed passive in nature. He had a very intimidating presence among them, and not one of them dared question his authority.

His village of origin however, remained a mystery, even to his squad.

Walking quietly across the dry sand towards some rocks and wet, sandy areas close to the calm water's edge of the ocean, the ghost of a Jonin knelt down and traced a series of footprints running too and from the rocks. After which, he pinched some grains of sand within one of the sandal marks and sniffed the grains, holding it up to the winds so that it blew away. He then stood up and smelt the air, before following the footsteps inland. Disturbance in the gravel, earth, grass, and other areas of the terrain indicated that a person matching weight distribution, aggregate size and scent of their target had just been through here.

Nodding his head, the Jonin turned towards his team of rogues, who rose to their feet in a sign of readiness.

"This way…" the man said with a deep, rough voice.

In a blink of an eye, the group of eleven ninjas all up vanished inland, leaving behind the grey embankments of coastal terrain, and their own footprints.

_**

* * *

**_

_**Back at the temple…**_

The red-haired girl, now having finished cooking all of her fish, was now happily eating one. Like a kebab, she took nibbles out of it, careful not to choke on any of the bones. Kneeling by her fire pit, she ate with the manners of a young heiress, an expressionless face, and an air to the way she sat, straightened and respectful.

Every so often, she would glance at the stranger occupying her place of residence. Since she had started cooking, the blonde haired boy had moved to the stairs of the temple, lying on the hardwood floor, and catching whiffs of the fish. Though she was still irritated at his unwillingness to move out, she soon quieted down, and decided to ignore him for the duration of meal time.

After a few minutes of watching and listening to the girl nibble down her lunch, Naruto's stomach growled and he made a look that showed this discomfort. Sitting up, he raised his straw hat and swung his feet over the steps, getting more comfortable. Scrolls back on his back in his bandoleer, along with his tanto, the spiky haired blonde gazed down at the girl. Silence dawned for the next few seconds, till the young ninja's hunger gave in.

"That fish looks good," Naruto exclaimed softly. "May I have some?"

The girl glared at him. She swallowed her food and placed the fish kebab back on the pot. "No, you may not. It's rude enough that you are refusing to leave, now on top of watching me to no end, you're asking me for food too? For a wandering Ronin or whoever you are, you sure are pathetic!"

Naruto shrugged off this statement. "Hey… I was just asking. I'll even pay you for some…"

The girl turned away, nose in the air. "Well, you can forget it. Go get your own…"

"Fine…"

The girl went back to eating, and Naruto went back to just watching her eat, bored and a little bit upset. They would remain like this for the next few minutes.

That was until a sudden vibration in the air caught Naruto's attention. Picking up this disturbance on the wind, he looked up casually, almost in an aimless way.

"Hn…"

"What is it now?" the girl growled, looking in his direction.

"Don't look now, but I think you've got dinner guests…" Naruto said, not at all worried.

Gasping, the girl stood up quickly, dropping her fish, and eyes darting around her. Through sharp senses, she spotted a glint of steel in the treetops of the evergreens, and reacting quickly, broke into a sprint for the stairs leading down the mountain. Little did she know was that the stairs was the only way in and out of the temple grounds, and the intruders were using it too.

"Oh no!"

Suddenly, kunai shot out of the bushes and down from the trees, catching her foot and stopping her in her tracks, and wrapping around her. Arms and legs tied, the girl feel forward, landing hard on the ground and yelping in pain. With their prey now caught, the figures hiding in the shadows then revealed themselves, leaping out of their hiding places, high and low, and surrounding their target and the boy sitting on the steps of the temple. All the while, Naruto did not move, nor showed any sign of surprise.

"Got her," one of the attacking, rogue ninjas exclaimed, putting his foot underneath the squirming girl bound by wires, and flipping her over, violently. "Looks like we've got our target!"

"Finally! After thirty days of searching!" another one said, walking over and picking up the girl by one of the cables that bound her. The girl yelped out more at how tied they were wrapped around her. "You have been quite the slippery slug, your highness…"

"Don't hurt her too much. We don't want to get scolded by the boss," the other ninja that had first approached the girl warned.

"Ahh… what will they care!" the Chunin that held the little girl up exclaimed, throwing her more into the center of the ring. The girl hit the ground and rolled, crying out in agony. "After all, she's just a bargaining chip for the village's High Princess to sign over the land to us so that we can finally call it our own! So what if she's got a few scratches, we'll have to kill her anyway!"

Naruto watched from under his straw hat as the girl was thrown around without any regard for her wellbeing. Bound tightly by chords and wires, it was a sight the blonde was quite familiar with, and winced inwardly at the way she was treated. Looking around, he saw that there were ten ninja all in all, all of them rogue as their headbands were scratched out, and apparently, from their garb, were also of Chunin status, mere soldiers. The two of the ten that stood on either side of him, kunai drawn, were also Chunin, and weren't as focused on him as they were the physical torment their comrades were inflicting on their quarry.

"_Hmm… this dull day has just gotten interesting."_

"Don't you think you guys are being a little rough on the girl," Naruto said, looking up at the rogue ninjas that surrounded him. "It's not very nice to hit a young woman…"

"Hey, what about this one?" the Chunin to Naruto's right called out. "Should we kill him?"

"He's just a boy, leave him be," one of the other ninja standing by replied.

"But he might have something valuable on him! Surely we can get some sort of bonus if we see what this brat's got on him!"

"Fine… kill him. But make it quick…"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Naruto said, lowering his head and running his thumb over the brim of his straw hat. "For a bunch of Chunin, you guys are surprisingly slow. You don't want to mess with me…"

"What was that?" the masked ninja towering over him on his left growled, reaching for his kunai pouch.

"That's it! He's so dead!" the Chunin on Naruto's right growled, quickly swiping out at him with the kunai he held in his hand.

The move was instantaneous, and to the Chunin on the surrounding temple grounds, was in a blink of an eye. The boy sitting on the steps, suddenly rolled and slid underneath the Chunin attacking him, drawing his tanto from its sheath and slicing at the man's feet, cutting out his Achilles heels, and knocking him forward. Crouching behind his would be attacker now starting to stumble forward, he quickly leapt onto his back and impaled him through the neck with his weapon, directing the weight and forward motion of the Chunin straight into his comrade, and stabbing him right in the chest, right above the heart. Naruto leapt off of his opponent, sending them both into the ground, and landing silently himself near the fireplace.

By the time Naruto had sent the two Chunin face first into the dust, the ninja in the surrounding area had finally reacted. Shocked at the speed of the boy, their immediate thoughts were, to clear up the dialogue a little, 'what in the holy hell happened?' A few seconds after watching two of their ranks go down, the remaining ninja who were able-bodied enough, sprang into action.

A ninja charged at Naruto from his right, throwing a cluster of shuriken in his direction. Spotting the direction of attack, Naruto ducked under the hail of ninja stars, and immediately tossed a kunai knife in that ninja's direction, impaling him right between the eyes. The spray of blood and the yell of pain were soon followed by a loud thud of his target hitting the ground, and a groan as the Chunin's life floated away on the breeze.

Two more ninja charged at Naruto from his one o'clock, leaping through the air and lunging at him with large katana sized kunai drawn. Upon landing they immediately launched into a flurry of attacks, with Naruto easily stepping into and easily avoiding their line of attack and strikes, as if he were avoiding two kids trying to lunge at him. He kicked out at one of the attacker's feet, sending him tumbling into his friend and effectively knocking the two of them over.

The two Chunin watching over the girl looked on in shock, while their prey, bound at their feet, looked up at the yellow haired boy with wide eyes and in complete disbelief.

Another ninja attacked from Naruto's right. The boy jogged towards him in return, before leaping to the right to avoid the kunai strike, barrel-rolling over the fire place. Coming to a crouched stance beside it, the spiky haired blonde picked up the pot of boiling water on the metal grate by the handle, and tossed it at the Chunin that had overshot his strike. He hit him right on the head, splashing water all over him and burning him severely. The man staggered around clutching the side of his head and face, crying out in agony.

The Chunin whom had toppled onto each other after attempting to hit their target, were back on their feet. Adjusting their weapons and stances, they charged the boy down. However, before they could even get into striking range, Naruto had already formed a series of hand seals and, crouching where he was, took in a deep breath of air and took aim.

"_Wind Release: Ash Burning Cloud!"_

Blowing out his lung full of air, he sent a cloud of black, hot ash his technique picked up from the fireplace, and enveloped the two Chunin within it, including the staggering one that was hit in the face by the pot of hot water. The screams that followed were ones of pain and agony, as the burning ash set their skin and clothes alight. Seconds later, as the hot ash cloud grew, it suddenly exploded within itself. The fiery explosion did not detonate beyond the ash cloud, but within it, and Naruto stood back and watched the fire show.

Once the explosion died out, three bodies fell out of the cloud of dust to the floor, charred remains of the three shinobi.

With Naruto's back turned, two more ninja decided to make their attack. Landing on either side of the stock still ten-year-old, the two ninja threw kunai attacked to cables in his direction, looping them around him and bounding him the same way they did the girl. Holding him by the snares at a distance of ten meters, the two Chunin formed a series of five or so hand seals, and launched their attack on the stoic youngster, intent on killing him.

"Ninja Art: Poison Sting Shower!" they both shouted in unison, inhaling air, and exhaling a shower of hundreds of chakra needles.

The needles shot through the air faster then arrows, but about half a second before impact of their target, Naruto crouched low against his restraints and leapt straight into the air, with strength that yanked at the Chunin's cables connected to their gauntlets under their sleeves, extending them further and knocking them off balance. This inevitably caused the shower of needles to miss their target and instead hit the Chunin users on either side. Staggered, they were unable to avoid and were killed in a shower of death, impaled in over a hundred different locations.

Landing several feet away, Naruto grabbed the cables and wires bounding him, and casually shrugged them off. After which, he turned his attention to the last two.

Realizing that they were next, the two Chunin completely forgot about their primary target at their feet, and simply went in to attack the boy. Drawing kunai, they charged into battle, yelling at the top of their lungs. However, as they were halfway across the temple grounds, Naruto had already begun his attack, charging straight at them in a zigzag pattern. His speed ensured he covered more ground in a much shorter amount of time. From the Chunin's perspective, the boy seemed to shimmer from one point to another, and was constantly out of focus. That was how fast the boy was, and he was just getting started.

In a blink of an eye, Naruto flash stepped right in between the two Chunin. There was a flash of streaks of light on either side, the blonde ninja shimmering into full view and skidding to a stop behind the rogue ninjas, tanto drawn. All of a sudden, the left arm of the Chunin, who had ruthlessly been throwing the little girl around, flew right off; a clean cut. The other Chunin however, had his throat slit open, and he nearly lost his head. Gurgling and spraying blood, he fell to the floor dead, while the other collapsed, clutching the stump of his former arm and crying out in agony.

"OH MY GOD! IT HURTS! IT HURTS! AAAAAARRRGGGGHHHHH! GAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Naruto stood up fully, sheathing his blade and looking back at his handy work. Having finished them all off and leaving one of them screaming in pain as punishment for his actions, the young ninja felt his entertainment for the day was over. However when he turned around, he suddenly saw another combatant he didn't notice before. Dressed in white, and wearing a straw hat and battered mask, this towering figure glared across at Naruto from twenty meters away.

Raising an eyebrow, the blonde turned to face him, while the red-headed girl lying on the ground behind him continued to gawk at the boy. She blinked several times, unable to believe what she was seeing before her.

Watching the boy from afar gave the Jonin initiative to enter the battle himself and have some fun. Looking at the damage caused by this ten-year-old, nameless warrior, he saw the kid had skill, and was inwardly ecstatic at the prospects of a good fight.

Reaching up with his right hand from underneath his cloak, the Jonin removed his mask, tossing it aside, revealing a rough face with black, wavy hair, a goatee, and a large scar moving from above his right eye, down, and across his nose, stopping at the left corner of his lower lip. He was blind in the right eye, but that meant a lot of his other senses would be sharper.

Upon throwing the mask away to his side, that swift movement allowed him to draw three large kunai, each appearing in between his fingers. A huge grin on his face, he threw them straight at Naruto.

The speed of them caught Naruto off guard a little, but he managed to dodge the first barrage, knocking one aside before charging forward, kicking up dust. One kunai in particular struck the injured Chunin on his knees right in the head, impaling deeply, and killing him instantly.

The Jonin charged forward as well, moving to his right, with Naruto mirroring. The two skidded to a stop, the young boy's back to the temple, and the cloaked Jonin's back to the evergreen forest. Right hand behind his back, the Jonin reached for more kunai, with the blonde shinobi taking a defensive stance, preparing for another attack. From his position, Naruto could easily see bandoleers of kunai strung up on the Jonin's body armor. This array of weapons, topped with an unusual chakra signature coming off of his opponent, made Naruto a little worried.

He narrowed his eyes on his opponent.

"Sorry to disappoint pal, but I'd rather not get more involved in this than I already am…"

The Jonin wordlessly smirked, drawing from behind him a large cable, laced with serrated edges and a heavy kunai acting as a counterweight on the striking end. Unrolling it by dropping the kunai end, the Jonin then swung his arm out, transferring kinetic energy into the body of the whip, and causing it to fling through the air wildly. Naruto backed away a little, watching as the kunai on the end slapped against the ground, kicking up dirt and dust, and cutting huge gashes into the dry earth. What the Jonin formed with this lashing of a whip was a wall of cutting steel power.

Seizing the opportunity, the Jonin slashed out with the whip, its cable slicing through the air with a burning hum. Naruto leapt to the side, avoiding the strike, which ended up slicing straight through the wooden temple. The ferocity of the strike came out of the sheer length of the weapon, with the velocity and strength put behind it cutting straight through the building with ease. Naruto barrel-rolled, landing crouched and charging at his opponent, trying to use his speed as an advantage.

His opponent gritted his teeth, and with great effort, pulled the whip back and flung it around, using the unorthodox and unpredictable movements of the whip to strike at his opponent. With quick reflexes, Naruto leapt forward through the air, flipping, ducking, sliding and cart wheeling through loopholes in the whips. However, he had to evade to the left and right quite frequently as the length of the metallic cable came screaming at him, cutting through the air like a buzz-saw. This made it impossible for Naruto to get close to his opponent.

The Jonin swung the whip around him and twirled it above his head and around his body, sending another series of strikes straight at his opponent. Naruto landed right in its path, ducked under one lash of the cable then leapt back through the air, gaining altitude. Flipping over and out of the whip's loops, Naruto swiped his hands outwards in a throwing motion, sending a barrage of ten ninja stars through the air at his opponent.

The blonde's opponent however was well-rehearsed in his use of the whip, grabbing the handle in two hands and lashing the whip around him, knocking every single shuriken out of the air in mid-flight. They scattered, and the Jonin sent another lash of his whip at his still airborne target. Naruto, seeing the attack come in, drew a kunai and brought it to bear, blocking the strike with a loud clang, that sent him into the crumbling roof of the temple with the force of the impact. He landed on his feet, but quickly leapt off the roof as another slash of the whip came right at him, taking a huge chunk of the temple's roof out.

Naruto landed and rolled, throwing another four shuriken at his opponent, curving them through the air. The Jonin expertly deflected them once more, and lashed horizontal and vertical strikes of his whip directly at his opponent once more. The boy gritted his teeth, bringing around his kunai and blocking the first strike, but the second strike caught him in a guard-break, and the whip batted his wrist, the cable carving a nice gash and knocking the kunai out of his hand.

Seeing an opening, the Jonin grinned widely and charged at his opponent with speed to match the boy's. he leapt through the loops in his whip, Naruto looking up to see the flicker of the Jonin before he appeared right in front of him, spinning to gather momentum before a side-kick was sent his way. Naruto crossed his arms and blocked, the sheer size of the man being a big advantage in terms of strength, as the kick, though guarded against, sent Naruto flying straight through the wooden temple. Crashing through the wooden pillars, Naruto shot out the other side, and landed on both feet, skidding to a stop.

Frowning, Naruto glared back through the building. Suddenly the man came careening through another part of the wall of the temple, breaking it into splinters and making another nice hole. Amidst the flying debris, the Jonin charged straight at Naruto, grinning maliciously. The boy gritted his teeth, and flipped out of the way as the cloaked man lunged, striking with a kunai.

The two engaged in close quarters, kicking up dirt, dust and wooden debris, with Naruto on the defensive, ducking, shifting, and side-stepping and flipping in an unorthodox and complicated fighting pattern that the Jonin just couldn't keep up with. The Jonin chuckled and with a yell, lunged again with a series of kunai strikes, kicks and punches. Naruto ducked the kunai and blocked the kick, before suddenly dropping to his feet and sliding straight under the Jonin between his legs. In that instant, Naruto reached up and grabbed a kunai from the man, before standing to his full height behind the Jonin and reengaging.

Naruto lashed out, the two warrior's kunai clashing, sparks flying. Pushing forward, the young ninja's very strength matched the older man's, the Jonin skidding across the ground, before they broke the grapple. The cloaked ninja tossed his kunai and another three on a second swipe, Naruto blocking the first and seemingly shimmering out as he avoided the next three, spinning in and side-kicking the man in the stomach, sending him skidding across the ground.

The Jonin laughed. "Not bad!" He charged again, another kunai drawn and he lashed out at Naruto. The boy leapt clean over, kicking off of the taller man's head and landing behind him. They both spun to meet each other, the taller of the two lunging down with another strike, which Naruto leapt over again, this time landing with his right foot on the man's arm, and using it as a surface, pivoted and sent a left roundhouse kick straight into the man's face. The blow rocked the surrounding air with a bang, and the Jonin was sent flying back into the temple, crashing through the massive gap and tumbling out on the other side.

Using the momentum from his flight, he barrel rolled and flipped off of the ground, getting back to his feet, blood seeping out of his mouth. He grinned as he locked his sights back on his opponent.

Naruto followed him over the temple, leaping clean over and descending straight down at his opponent. Reaching into his robes, the Jonin drew another six kunai, and flung them up at his opponent, who managed to dodge them by stepping on the first one in mid-flight, and kicking off of fifth one's underside to drop to the ground. Flipping and landing crouched; Naruto lunged at his opponent, who struck out as well with his whip once more.

The large cable swung through the air again, causing Naruto to double-back and back-flip out of its range as it collided with the ground, chunks of debris flying everywhere as the ground exploded. Naruto skidded to a stop out of the whip's range, the Jonin letting out a short laugh, reaching into his robes with his free hand, and sending three kunai flying at Naruto through the loops in his whip.

The blonde shinobi dodged the first two, but was hit in the by the third, scratching his arm. Wincing, Naruto slapped his hands together, forming a series of hand seals and breathing in deeply.

"_Wind Release: Dragon Tornado Ball!"_

Naruto exhaled, a massive blast of wind erupting from his mouth and spinning at a high velocity as it shot straight at his opponent, carving a nice trench into the earth as the ball of wind shot forward. From within the wind, the shape of a Chinese Fire Bolt Dragon formed, and with a roar matching the ferocity of the attack, it collided head on with its target.

The Jonin growled as he was struck by the massive attack, the ground around him cracking and shattering as debris and dust blew over him, his whip being knocked out of his hand and entangling around his waist. However, the blast, which was enough to level a lot of the earth, and blast over a number of evergreen trees behind the cloaked ninja, failed to knock the rogue Jonin off balance. He took it, battling against the winds and seismic forces till they stopped.

When they did, the rogue ninja charged at Naruto, with great speed, surprising Naruto greatly. Not even Jiraiya could withstand that attack, let alone continue fighting. There was enough force in it to break every bone in the body. However, undeterred, the blonde ninja retaliated, charging at the Jonin as well.

Meeting each other halfway, the reengaged in close combat, the Jonin lashing out with a series of kunai strikes from both hands, slashing and stabbing through the air as he attempted to hit his opponent. One strike however, overshot, and Naruto side-stepped it, the kunai lodging itself in the tree where the fireplace was. Pivoting on the ground, the young boy, struck out with a palm strike for the man's elbow with full force, the sound of bones crunching and cracking soon to follow as Naruto snapped the Jonin's arm inwardly at the elbow.

The cloaked ninja leapt back leaving the kunai lodged in the tree, his right arm hanging limply at his side, while his left continued to clutch his other kunai. He grinned maliciously, before charging at Naruto with one arm still in use, the boy recovering from his surprise at the man's quick recovering and flipping to the left quickly, avoiding the next strike.

Landing outside of the man's reach, Naruto drew a cluster of shuriken, and threw them at the Jonin, scoring a number of hits on the man's chest, shoulder, neck and torso.

The impact of the shuriken caused the man to stagger back. However, after taking the force of impact from the throwing weapons, the Jonin looked back up with a grin, and charged Naruto again, the blonde gasping in shock and leaping clean over the man as he lunged, stepping on his head and pushing him forward to try and knock him off balance.

"_A ninja who doesn't feel pain? This is unreal! Even though he's human, he should still feel something!"_

Landing against the side of the tree, Naruto crouched against it and grabbed the Jonin's kunai lodged in the side. Pumping wind chakra into it, he pushed off of it and spun through the air, slicing the tree there and causing it to collapse towards him, he barrel-rolled out of the way, and watched as the tree came crashing down on the staggered Jonin, still in its path and unable to move out of its way fast enough.

The tree certainly did crash down on him with its full weight, but with superhuman effort, the Jonin withstood it once more, and tore his way through the branches when it crashed to the ground.

Clenching his fist, and gathering up a serious expression, Naruto barrel-rolled to the left, avoiding a punch from the Jonin's still working arm. When he did, he at the same time grabbed up the whip the rogue ninja was using before then charged at him.

The Jonin spun round to meet him, sending a kunai flying at the boy, who dodged it then leapt over him, somersaulting and looping the whip around the Jonin's neck. The sudden pull on it caused the cloaked ninja to stagger, who then spun around and punched out at the boy, gritting his teeth and letting out a roar of frustration. But before he could land another blow, Naruto lunged back, sending an elbow right into the Jonin's neck and sending him straight into the ground, with the blonde landing on top of him with such force, he formed a small crater in the earth, a loud bang and crack resounding.

Naruto paused, the dust settling and silence falling. Looking down at the Jonin who now lay under his elbow and knee, the spiky haired fighter could clearly see a startled look on the man's face, blood dripping from his mouth. When the young shinobi retracted his elbow, there was a snap of bones popping, and the man's head rolled limply to the side, eyes hollow and lifeless.

He was dead.

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	4. Just Another Day In Paradise

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_Just Another Day in Paradise_

After his battle, Naruto went over to the red-haired girl lying on the sidelines, who was still speechless in response to watching such an amazing battle undertaken by her unexpected savior. Untying her carefully, the first thing the blonde did once she had sat up was check for any critical wounds inflicted on her. Seeing none, he wordlessly stood up and then went around the temple grounds, collecting the shuriken he had used land were laying around the battlefield. To compensate for any lost or damaged equipment, the young ninja scavenged off of the corpses of the dead, refilling his arsenal, as well as giving him the opportunity to pinch several ryo from the open pockets, and anything else of significant worth.

Humming to himself as he searched the Jonin's corpse he had defeated, he found several items of interest, including a gold necklace, several more of the custom made kunai the rogue ninja used, a scroll of unknown content, a small bag of gold pieces and gemstones, and a vial of dragon berries.

It was the last item he found on the body that got Naruto interested, and taking a moment, examined the contents. The boy furrowed his brow at the small, bright red fruit sitting in the glass case.

"_Pervy Sage told me that these berries are used as a form of pain killer in places where medic ninjas are rare. Take too many of these raw and they will render you paralyzed. But the juice from these boiled in water leaves the solid pits with the potency to kill the nerves in the body, hence making one invulnerable to pain if consumed…"_

Frowning, Naruto pocketed the vial for future study, and stood up. When he did, he pocketed his hands. With nothing else to do, the threat of death removed, and everything he was carrying on hand, he proceeded to leave.

"Wait!"

The young ninja froze at the top of the stairs, turning to see the girl standing right behind him, standing straight up and hands placed atop of each other and in front. As soon as he saw her, she bowed to him low, coming as another surprise to him.

"T-Thank you so much!" the girl said, loud enough so that he could hear her clearly.

"Neh… it was nothing," Naruto replied casually and lazily, rubbing the back of his head and stretching his neck a little. "To be honest, that was the most fun I've had all week…"

He began walking again, only to stop when the girl continued to talk. She looked up, a look of desperation and pleading on her face.

"Please, stranger… uhh… young ninja… I beg of you… I… I… I need your help!"

Naruto looked back at her, a stoic demeanor still in play. Just when he thought he was free of any restraints, out of the blue, this young, snobbish, beautiful red haired girl who had just recently today been trying to kick him out of her personal space was now asking him to stay. In all honesty, the blonde had thought his display of strength would have made him less appealing to be around.

"Hmm?"

She bowed low again.

"The way you fought off those ninja… it was amazing! I have never seen anything like it, nor did I expect someone of your age to be this capable in the heat of battle. I am sorry if I ever looked down upon you, or treated you wrongly earlier. But please… I'm asking you for an ear to my plea… please!"

Turning towards her a bit more, Naruto took a bit more interest in her, blinking in curiosity.

"Oh yeah? Well… you have my attention. What is it that you need?"

The girl looked up at him, eyes shimmering.

"I am not some peasant girl from this part of the country… I am actually from a village south of this land, the Kingdom of the Eastern Winds. I am Princess Konoka, next in line for the throne from High Princess Hirano, my mother."

"Oh… you're a princess. That explains a lot about the way you act of course…" Naruto commented, "…go on…"

"A couple months ago, a band of wandering ninja dressed in white entered our kingdom, assassinating all of our closest bodyguards, and after a week, took my mother hostage. I managed to escape, and tried to find help, but had to constantly keep moving to avoid being found. I didn't know anyone whom I could turn to, nor did I trust anyone. That is… until I met you. Please, I ask of you this… please come with me back to my kingdom, and kill those who have taken my mother as their prisoner, and save our kingdom!"

Naruto blinked, looking at the girl in deep thought. Of course, the proposition was very risky, and seemed highly dangerous. However, his heart told him not to turn down a cry for help, which only feuded with the feeling that 'this was a really bad idea'.

He scratched the side of his cheek, shrugging his shoulders. "I'm not sure about this… (sigh). From what you're saying, there are more of these white cloaked rogue ninja of Jonin skill levels holding your mother, the High Princess, and your people against their will? Just exactly how many are there… I mean _**bad guys**_ in total? Make it specific."

"In total? It was reported in from the front gates of the village that there were five white cloaked figures, and about twenty other ninja protecting a short man in a white suit… their leader. The five rogue ninja are apparently in league with this man, while the other twenty ninjas are just hired mercenaries…"

"Okay… sounds difficult enough," Naruto replied, rubbing the back of his head, taking everything he was learning into account to come up with a solution. "Did you learn anything else about the rogue ninja, the five cloaked ones?"

"I… I'm not sure. Like the one you just fought and killed, the other four are incredibly fast and strong, armed to the teeth… and each of them wield a different weapon, like a whip, a jian or a kusanagari. But the strangest thing is, unlike the other rogue ninjas, they don't use any of the techniques I've seen you use. They rely purely on close combat," Konoka said, shaking her head as memories continued bombarding her. "It's clear though that they don't need any. The five alone wiped out most of our palace guard when they stormed the building… and their leader… he… he was the most terrifying of the lot. When the guards barred the massive doors of our palace's entrance, he simply raised his hand, and blew it open. It was unbelievable!"

Naruto rubbed his chin, looking around as his mind whirled with ideas.

"_The Jonin with high taijutsu and kenjutsu capabilities is hard enough… but this guy… he sounds like he's really packing some serious techniques." _Then, a grin spread across the blonde boy's lips, and his eyes flashed deviously. _"Interesting… I can further test my abilities, and as an added bonus, get some much needed exercise!"_

The young ninja chuckled and whipped out a 'thumbs-up' to the girl, who was slightly taken aback by the positive attitude shown by him. She blinked in surprise.

"Alright then… I'll help you out. After all, Naruto Uzumaki the _Demon Fox of Mount Myobokuzan_ is always up for a challenge," Naruto stated. But then, a frown graced his enthusiastic expression, and he pointed at her firmly. "But this job… it's not gonna come cheap…"

The girl's expression lit up like a Christmas tree, from an upset, pleading look, to one of delight and gratefulness.

She dropped to her knees and bowed to the young man. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Konoka looked back up at him. "I promise you… you will be rewarded greatly! Anything you wish or desire, I will use all in my power to grant it…"

Naruto smiled and nodded his head. He grinned at her as Konoka smiled up at him.

"What is it you wish to have in return for your services?"

Taking in a deep breath, the young ninja took a moment of thought as to what he really wanted to get out of this. With a blank check open up to him by this little princess, he could ask for anything. It was then, after coming to a decision, he looked back at her and smirked.

"It'll cost you _one_ cooked fish… I'm starving…"

* * *

When Konoka heard the boy's request, she couldn't believe her ears. Regardless, it was a request she could fulfill for him, and when she made cooked the one fish she had on her, she tried to make it as tasty as possible. The young ninja was definitely satisfied, and once he had consumed his 'payment', piggy-backed the girl in the direction of her kingdom. He knew it was a long journey, and the distance by foot was long and treacherous, and was especially more dangerous since he had an escort.

So, doing what he did with any other precious cargo he had on him, he carried her. Leaving the wastelands behind after setting fire to the bodies in the remains of the temple, Naruto and Konoka headed south as fast as they could.

Well… as fast as Naruto could.

"OW! Do you have to wear all of your equipment on your back! OUCH! They're hurting me! OW!" Konoka cried her head propped right next to Naruto's ear.

Driven deaf after the third mile, Naruto gritted his teeth and tried to push it all back. He quietly counted to ten, and then let out a sigh, as he launched himself towards the next tree.

This was his fastest way of traveling, and his 'boss' was not pleased with the accommodations.

"Well, I'm sorry your highness, but you'll just have to bear with it for another two miles. I'll stop for a rest soon…"

"Oooohh… this is unacceptable! My kingdom is thirty miles due south of our position, and you plan on _running_ and _jumping_ all the way there, carrying me on your back? For a great _warrior_ such as yourself, you sure are kind of lousy at this…"

She was clearly mocking him.

A tick mark formed on Naruto's forehead, and he glanced back at her over his shoulder.

"Very well then princess… how about a change of accommodations? Why don't you try out first class? The shoulders! It's complete with a yellow hair-pillow head rest, away from my ears, plenty of leg room, and gives you a five star view of all your surroundings, especially the tree branches. And since we're moving so high up in the canopy at top-speed, you'll be getting the full experience; twigs, leaves, over-hanging vines, all to the face, and at a conveniently low price! How's that for an alternative?"

The girl huffed and looked away.

"I'm just fine, thank you…"

Making it another couple of miles, and without hearing another peep from the girl, Naruto for the most part, was having a pleasant trip.

However, even though the young warrior was planning on stopping after two miles, he just continued on, covering another four at a surprising speed. While on the move, his mind was a whirl with thoughts. He knew he had to come up with a plan of infiltrating the castle, as well as fighting off against a gauntlet of ninja. The ones he had to really worry about were the remaining four cloaked ninjas, and their leader, who the girl described to have unbelievable strength and power in the palm of his hand. Furthermore, he was on his own, and no longer with the perverted hermit.

Naruto needed to think on his feet for this one…

"_Ninja who can't feel pain is an otherworldly thing… they will definitely be difficult to beat all at once. My only chance is to attack with everything I've got!"_

"OWW! That's it! Enough! Stop right now! Your weapon's scabbard is digging into my leg, and I don't like it!"

"Hey! Hey! Careful with that! It took me hours to make that blade. It's very fragile!"

"Well so am I! Stop jumping this instant!" Konoka shouted, kicking him in the thighs with the back of her heels. However, one of her 'well' aimed kicks landed in the boy's jewels… hard.

The spiky haired shinobi winced in agony, before feeling his world go black and blue for a full five seconds. In that instant, Naruto's foot suddenly caught onto a broken branch, and with the speed he was moving at, was sent stumbling forward even faster on a randomly placed trajectory thanks to his trip.

Recovering and attempting to control his fall, shielded the girl on his back as they fell, Konoka crying out in terror as they careened through the canopy.

The next thing Naruto remembered was him crashing into several think branches, breaking right through them, bouncing off the ground and shooting out of the forest into a clearing…

_**SPLASH!**_

With a giant lake in the middle.

* * *

_**Half an hour later…**_

"ACHOO!"

Konoka sniffled as she wrapped the towel tighter around her, shivering as she watched her clothes dry over the small fire Naruto had lit to keep them both warm. Now in only her underwear and a towel, she felt a little uncomfortable in her position, especially with the young ninja tasked with escorting her napping not too far from where she was sitting beneath the lake-side tree.

Naruto didn't need to undress, and just decided to sleep off the time it would take for Konoka's clothes to dry, specifically because she was so fussy about a little water in her clothes and wanted to stop for a while. After screaming in his ear for over two hours on their journey, she finally got what she wanted, with an added twist. She was now paying for kicking him in the nads.

"Bless you…" Naruto moaned with his hands behind his head as he stared into the underside of his straw hat.

"It's your fault!" Konoka scolded the young ninja. "If you hadn't fallen into the lake, and just stopped like I asked, we would still be on the road now. But noooo…"

"Well, it's a point down to you for kicking me in the crotch," Naruto replied calmly. "Because of that, I tripped and threw us both into the lake, and now you have to sit close to naked until your shirt and pants dry off. Serves you right…"

Konoka blushed brightly and looked away. "Hmph… you don't need to remind me."

Sitting up, Naruto removed his hat and stretched his back, feeling it creak from ramming into several trees on his flight path, before back-flopping into the lake. He groaned in satisfaction and the much needed breather. Standing up, he stretched some more, his weapons, scrolls and sandals deposited on the ground beside the fire. It was then, when Konoka was glancing at him, noted a strangely interesting aspect about his appearance.

"Why aren't you soaking wet like me? You fell in the lake first and were in it for just as long as I was?"

"Because I know how to use my chakra to dry my clothes," Naruto said, rubbing the back of his head and looking her. The girl crossed her legs and held the towel around her tighter when he looked at her, and she averted her gaze. "It's a trademark _Naruto_ secret, something I learned to do after _I_ fell into the water more times then once learning to walk on it. I have to say, it's quite refreshing too…"

Unexpectedly, Naruto began taking off his clothes, tossing them on the log next to Konoka as he walked towards the lake. The moment she saw the boy stripping, the red headed girl blushed as bright as a tomato and looked away quickly, just as he was removing his fishnet shirt.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

"Geez, keep your shirt on…" Naruto looked back at her. He chuckled and shrugged. "Sorry… that's already off. Anyway… I'm going for a swim… and to practice some water techniques I'm learning. Don't want to go slack…"

Konoka huffed, letting him go do what he needed to do, and did not look in his direction in so doing. Smirking, the blonde headed down to the water, walk across it to the shallows, and take a stance. He then proceeded to perform the techniques Jiraiya had shown him, manipulating the water using his wind chakra from his palms and feet. At the same time, he began shadow sparring across the water, combining his taijutsu with his wind chakra, forming waves and cutting slices into the water.

Eventually, after practicing for a good half-hour on martial arts and chakra control, then proceeded with using hand-seals and performing genuine water techniques. His Water Dragon attacks roared up and out of the water to clash with a simultaneous water wall shield, clashing his attacks against each other in a spectacular display of raw power and ferocity.

Bored, Konoka decided to steal just a few glances at the young warrior, and on the inside, secretly wanting to get a 'really' good look at him.

When she did look in his direction, she was actually really, _really_, _**really**_ surprised to see just how well-toned he was for his age. Blinking, the girl tilted her head as she admired the boy as he trained across the water. The droplets of water that streaked through the air and down his skin from the lakes splashes and waves, the magnificent display of strength, the very same she had seen from him when he attacked that rogue ninja and saved her life, it was simply amazing from her perspective.

She blushed deeply and smiled as she gazed at him, propping her head on her hands as she got entranced in the young ninja's movements and body as he continued to train.

When Naruto finished, he came back to see Konoka staring at him dreamily. Puzzled, he looked down at himself to see what the problem was. Of course, he was only wearing a pair of training boxers and nothing else, and his skin only held a few blemishes of battle scars and damage, but nothing to have anyone engrossed in him so much, especially a girl.

He looked at the girl, perplexed. "Uhh… is something wrong?"

Snapping out of her dreamy state, Konoka choked on her quest to find words of explanation, but eventually huffed and looked away.

"No… nothing. I'm just glad you're finished already… now we can go," she said, standing up and taking her towel with her. She waked past Naruto, and as she did, secretly glanced at him one last time before both of them went to get dressed.

As they clothed themselves in their separate corners, Naruto decided to take a few peeks over at the girl himself. He was well aware that she had been watching him the whole time thanks to his high tuned senses, but he had no idea why. Well, that exact reason was similar to the reason he decided to take a glance at her. In terms of skin tone and form for her age, she was very pretty, and Naruto smiled a little at the sight.

"_She will definitely be a real beauty when she's older…"_ he thought, shaking his head and slipping his vest over his trench-coat.

Collecting his weapons, Naruto turned and smiled as Konoka approached him. She stopped in front of him and folded her arms.

"Well… what are we standing around for? Let's go!"

Nodding, Naruto turned and crouched, allowing the girl to climb onto his back. Once she was comfortable and secure, he started off once again. This time, he intended not to fall into the anymore lakes.

Meanwhile, as Naruto was focused on getting to their destination, Konoka nuzzled his head a little, feeling the softness of his golden locks rub against her cheek and chin, and at the same time, catching a whiff of his scent. She smiled and blushed lightly down at the young ninja.

"_He smells so nice… and he's so gentle and warm…"_

Placing her head against his, she suddenly started drifting off to sleep.

* * *

_**Later that day…**_

Naruto finally covered the remaining twelve miles between his starting point of his journey, and the _Kingdom of the Eastern Winds_. By this time, the sun was already beginning to set over the horizon, and from where he stood atop of a hill overlooking the kingdom, he was greeted with a magnificent sight of the sun's rays creating that heavenly haze of orange, yellow, purple and pink over the land, illuminating the large village far below.

It was almost as big as Konoha, with the differences being that there were actual ports leading out to the ocean to the East for this Kingdom, and that a large castle (resembling that of the Forbidden City in China), seated right in the center of it all.

Taking some time to absorb the entire setting before him, Naruto then headed down the hill towards the village that surrounded the castle. Before entering the city, he used henge to throw off the guards, thinking that he was some weary old-man with a large sack of potatoes over his back. The stunt worked well, and he entered without any troubles.

Knowing that entering the castle during night would be more troublesome, since the guards were most certainly on high alert, Naruto decided to take himself and his 'sack of potatoes' to an inn. Ordering a room for one at the _East End _lodge, a relatively small place ideal for him because it was really affordable, he went up to the room, locked the doors behind him, and dropped the henge. Konoka was remarkably still fast asleep.

Gently, he rested the girl on the bed and tucked her in.

Placing his weapons and scrolls on a nearby couch, he then headed over to the window, and lying across it, took watch over the village and the room they were staying in.

Aside from the fact that the leader of this village was under arrest, and probably locked away somewhere in the castle, he noted that all of the villagers were continuing on business as usual, same as the guards. It was surprisingly peaceful here, and not at all cluttered up like other villages that had their leadership severed. This got him thinking as he quietly sat at the window and looked down at the night time environment of the streets one story below.

"_The leader must be using High Princess Hirano as a puppet leader, while they secretly run the village in the shadows. Seeing as that her daughter is missing, and the fact that they are still on the hunt for her, have gotten the village's leader to cooperate under bargain for her daughter's life…"_

"_**Fear is a great motivator, kit,"**_ the Kyuubi spoke up in a low voice, her presence indicated by the light glow of the necklace around Naruto's neck. _**"It's not just the fear of getting hurt yourself… it's the thought of the ones you love getting hurt that really gets to you."**_

"_I know that, Kyuu-chan,"_ Naruto replied, looking down at his chest, seeing the necklace glow. _"I felt that pain inside every time I thought of what would happen to Ero-Sennin, Tsunade-baa-chan or even Shizune-nee-chan! I'd be far gone if I ever lost either of them…"_

"_**I understand why the girl ran away in the first place. It wasn't the choice she made for herself; in reality, it was the choice her mother made for her. Her mother must have thought that if her daughter left the kingdom, she would be able to prevent the invaders from taking over the kingdom completely by, not only saving her one and only daughter, but by also getting rid of a bargaining chip, as well keeping at least one heiress of royal blood alive…"**_

"_But one thing that confuses me is why the High Princess would go along with their demands when she knows she can sacrifice herself for the sake of her people and daughter…"_

"_**They must have bluffed that they had managed to snag her daughter before she got out of the city… that… or they are using a doppelganger in her place…"**_

"_I see. Well, one way we can be sure is by taking out the leader, and freeing the city then. A sneak attack will be most unnecessary, since we don't know where they are hiding Konoka's mother hostage. I need to be able to see she's alive before making a move…"_

"_**The only way you will be able to win this battle is if you manage to get through those perimeter walls and entice the four Jonin into a fight, and defeat them all single-handedly. If you challenge them correctly, then you will not only save the Princess's life, but free the Kingdom as well. Leave me to deal with the small-fry…"**_

Naruto grinned, looking up towards the sky as an idea popped into his head.

"Are you thinking what I am thinking, Kyuu?"

The Kyuubi grinned, although Naruto couldn't see it. _**"I think I've got the right idea…"**_

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	5. Battle of the Eastern Winds

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_The Battle of the Eastern Winds_

Hiding in an alleyway just outside of the large, red wooden gate threshold of the Imperial Castle of the _Kingdom of the Eastern Winds_, both Naruto and Konoka stood in the shadows. Crouching low, Konoka was looking round the building towards the massive doors and white bricked walls, seeing the guards standing by at attention, and a couple more patrolling on the balconies high above. She murmured in frustration and worry as she analyzed the aspects of their main point of entrance.

After a few minutes of scouting, she pulled her head back into the alleyway and looked up at her protector standing slumped up against the wall, hands in his pockets and straw hat worn low, casting a shadow over his face and hiding it from view.

"There are too many guards…"

"I figured that much, seeing as that your kingdom is under new management now," Naruto replied, voice low and tone surprisingly set on bored rather then enthusiasm.

"How could they recruit so many new guards in just a couple of months? The invaders killed most of my mother's guard when they raided our palace…"

"I'm pretty sure there aren't that many of them," Naruto said, looking up in the direction of the castle, even though he couldn't see it from here. "Like you said… there are only a few small fry at the front gate. As far as any other opposition I will be encountering when I storm the place, include four Jonin who are immune to pain and ninjutsu, and a supposedly supernaturally powerful businessman. In conclusion, we have an unknown number of regular guards but a definite number of really dangerous foes on the grounds… which make this job all the more annoying, and a sure sign that I'm going to be sore by the end of the day."

Konoka looked up at him oddly when he finished, causing him to look down at her in response. When she said nothing, he shrugged and rubbed a finger under his nose casually.

"I'm a ninja… I do this stuff a lot, which is usually followed by a string of optimism and complaints…"

"Do all ninja act like you?"

"Nope…" Naruto replied, giving her a small smile. "I'm the only unique ninja you've ever met."

"So what are you going to do to get in there? There are like 20 or so royal guard at the front door… how do you plan on getting past them, huh?" Konoka asked in a frantic manner, causing Naruto to rub the back of his neck at the 'figurative' pain she was giving him.

"_Even though she's a pretty flower, she's covered in bees…"_

Chuckling, the blonde ninja got off the wall and cracked his neck to the right, smirking down at the red headed girl before thumbing his chest in an egotistical way.

"You're going to find out why I'm the most unorthodox ninja you've ever met. We're going in through the front door!" Naruto proclaimed.

"Eh? Really? How?"

"Tsk, simple… knocking hard and carrying a present for the trouble…"

With that said Naruto unexpectedly scooped the girl up with his right arm and flung her over his shoulder, Konoka letting out a shriek as she was shanghaied by the boy. Then, like a rucksack, the ten to eleven year old ninja then marched out of the alleyway and down the road towards the front gates of the kingdom's Imperial Palace, smiling all the way, while Konoka kicked, clawed and screamed at him as they proceeded towards the guards.

"Just play along with this. Pretend I'm a bounty hunter and I have just captured you for a huge ransom…"

"WHAT? PUT ME DOWN YOU BASTARD! LET ME GO! THIS IS COMPLETELY UNACCEPTABLE! I'M A PRINCESS, NOT A GARBAGE BAG! AAAAARRRGH! I SAID PUT ME DOWN! AAAAAAHHHHH!"

"Beautiful! Your acting skills are amazing! Keep it up," Naruto chuckled.

"WHO SAID I'M ACTING! PUT ME DOWN AT ONCE! GAAAAAHHHH! NARUTO! PUT ME DOWN NOW! AAAAARRRGGGHHH!"

People on the street watched in shock and puzzlement as a strange boy carried a girl swearing profusely down the street towards the palace gates, having not the slightest clue as to what was going on. All they knew was that they were going to be in a heap of trouble if they didn't stop.

The racked of course, drew the attention of the guards at the front gate, whom stopped what they were doing and looked in wonder at the boy walking towards them, and the girl who was screaming over his shoulder, screaming out a number of swears, some of which were completely inappropriate for someone of her age. Eventually, the boy and his passenger stopped at the foot of the gate, and the guards towering in front of Naruto looked down at him oddly as he smiled up at them.

"I have a package for High Princess Hirano. I read on a flier in my village that she had lost her pet banshee of a daughter, and I'm here to hand her in and collect the reward!"

"PET! **BANSHEEEEEE!** THAT'S IT! YOU'RE SO DEAD! I'M FUCKING KILLING YOU!"

"As you can see, she's in fine condition, and in no physical or mental way harmed," Naruto said, wincing when a particular kick from the girl hit him low.

The four guards, dressed in samurai robes and red, yellow and green battle armor, and armed with katanas and lances, looked down at the pair oddly. Looking up at each other in confusion, they then looked back down at Naruto with raised eyebrows.

"Umm… I'm afraid there has been some mistake, young man," the guard, obviously the highest ranking looking of the four, said. "Lady Konoka isn't permitted to move outside of the palace walls. In fact, she isn't even permitted outside of the Kingdom's Palace even under guard! For that matter, there has been no such news of her disappearing, or her missing! Sorry, but you'll have to leave."

"_Just as I thought…"_ Naruto thought. _"Oh well… guess I'm going to have to knock a little harder…"_

"Well… that's all well and good… but…" Naruto walked forward, gently shoving past the guards, who were a little too overwhelmed with surprise to do anything else but watch as he strode up to the gates, the girl on his back giving him the finger, and still spraying swear words from her mouth. "I'd rather see the High Princess herself! You see, it is her highness who hired a private sole-trader like me to go out and find her when she decided to run away! So, if you'll excuse me…"

Raising his left hand out to his side, Naruto concentrated and within seconds, a swirling blue ball of pure wind chakra suddenly appeared. The guards all leapt back in surprise, grabbing their swords or propping their lances on their hips and pointed towards the boy in preparation. Konoka's eyes widened in response when she came eye to tip with the pointy ends of their weapons.

"YOU BOY! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"

"STOP RIGHT NOW OR WE WILL ATTACK!"

The guards shouted at him simultaneously, all of them sweating nervously, as neither of them knew any form of ninjutsu or energy wielding techniques. Looking over his shoulder briefly, Naruto smirked and shrugged.

"Yeah… and?"

Turning away from them, Naruto raised his arm higher, the orb spinning in his hand growing to the size of a basketball. With a grin on his face, the boy thrust his attack arm forward, driving it straight into the crack between the two doors.

"RASENGAN!" Naruto shouted.

A shockwave rebounded off of the door, followed by a huge blast of wind and a prolonged explosion, as spinning winds with the force of a tornado or hurricane went plowing through the gates. The attack literally blasted the massive ten story doors off of their hinges, and sent them flying across the massive courtyard beyond the wall. They landed about fifty meters away from their launch point.

When the dust and debris settled, Naruto simply strolled on through, the girl slumped over his shoulder gawking at the sheer magnitude of his attack, and the guards… well… they were about as far gone in shock, awe and fear that they dropped their weapons and collapsed to their knees.

Naruto hummed to himself as he walked down the crazy-paved stone road leading up towards the large staircase of the palace. The guards on the surrounding walkways of the wall of the courtyard, and for that matter any guards in the courtyard, simply stood and watched with wide-eyes as the boy and the girl over his shoulder strolled on through.

When he reached the staircase, Naruto looked up towards the castle, analyzing it from his perspective. It was nice. Great color, solid structure, perfect for coastal areas, solid roof, statues, and artistic carvings. As far as architecture went, he had no complaints. After checking out the huge building, Naruto put Konoka to her feet, whom immediately dropped to her knees, clothes, hair and outlook all disheveled as she was still dazed from what had happened. The spiky haired blonde smiled down at her before looking up towards the imperial stronghold once more.

Taking in a deep breath, Naruto cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted as loud as he could. Well, it wasn't the brightest plan he had come up with, but he was getting some progress.

"HEEEELLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! IS ANYONE HOME? I HAVE A SPECIAL DELIVERY FOR HIGH PRINCESS HIRANO! WHY DON'T WHOEVER'S HIDING IN THERE COME ON OUT, INCLUDING YOU GUYS HOLDING HER HOSTAGE!"

There was silence, as both Naruto and Konoka waited for a response. Slipping his hands into his pockets and standing up right, Naruto stood and waited patiently for the show to start.

As if right on queue, the front doors to the palace opened up, and immediately the official stars of this 'show' poured out into the open. At the head of the group that walked out into the open was a woman dressed in a fine kimono, colors of royalty and face painted with her hair done up. She was a striking woman with brown hair in a top bun, and wearing elegant clothing with fair skin coloration. Naruto immediately deduced from her getup that she was the High Princess. Flanking her on her left and right were four cloaked figures dressed in white and wearing masks and straw hats, similar to the rogue ninja Naruto had encountered before, only they ranged from different sizes, and had their identities hidden. Flanking them in turn, of course, were ten ninja, dressed the same as the small fry at the temple incident, and all decidedly Chunin in rank from where they hailed from.

However, out of the entire flock, there was still no sign of the leader behind all this.

Naruto smiled to himself, and Konoka edged back slightly when she saw the crowd at the top of the stairs, specifically the presence of the four cloaked ninja.

The High Princess looked down at the two kids at the bottom of the stairs, one unknown boy dressed in a red trench-coat and wearing ninja body armor, as well as being armed with an assortment of weapons, and wearing a straw hat. She didn't know who he was. However, the moment her eyes fell on the girl kneeling beside him, a gasp escaped her lips and she stepped forward frantically, beginning to move down the stairs.

"KONOKA!"

"MUM!" Konoka shouted back.

However, just as the Hirano was starting down the stairs, one of the ninja in the white cloaks suddenly blurred out from the group escorting her, and flickered into view in front of the kingdom's leader. The movement was fluent and fast, and Naruto knew instantly that _that _particular one would be the most difficult to deal with.

The cloaked figure wore a straw hat and a white robe like the others, as well as wearing a more distinguishable mask, much like an ANBU hawk mask with a unique yellow and red swirl pattern. Whoever it was behind it was notably the shortest of the lot, and had no visible weapons in sight. The moment the Jonin reappeared in front of the older woman, began nudging her back up the stairs.

"I'm afraid we cannot allow you to go that easily, ma lady," a cold, slick voice exclaimed from behind the crowd of Jonin.

As the High Princess was gently nudged back into the previous formation, she was suddenly pushed aside as the owner of the voice pushed his way into view. The Jonin who were standing at attention bowed as he entered into the sunlight. Naruto immediately sized him up the moment he appeared at the top of the last set of stairs, and Konoka audibly whimpered and slid behind Naruto grabbing hold of the tails of his trench-coat from fear of looking up at the man.

Instantaneously, the blonde could see that this man meant business. Of course, he wore full white formal wear with a red tie and black, wing-tipped shoes on his feet. He also wore a white coat draped over his shoulders, and a white fedora, covering long blonde hair tied back into a ponytail. Furthermore, he wore black gloves with metal guards on the backs, inscribed with strange symbols and seal marks Naruto had never seen before.

The moment the man saw Naruto and Konoka, he grinned and bowed his head respectfully towards his guests.

"Young lady Konoka… what a pleasure it is to finally meet with you. Oh… and you've brought a guest," the man dressed in full white exclaimed, looking up. However, the moment he did look up, his expression changed from sinister, to more of an annoyed look. "A rather… unexpected and unwelcome guest… who just destroyed _**my**_ front gates of _**my**_ palace!"

"Yeah… well…" Naruto began, rubbing the back of his head in a very casual sort-of habit. He yawned a bit in a mocking way, showing that he could care less about the man's property then anything else, which seemed to tick him off a little. "Take it out of petty cash…I bet insurance will cover it."

The man clenched his fists slightly, but then unclenched them and smiled down at the boy. This smile particularly sent chills down the spines of whoever looked upon it, since his face, though handsome and charming as it was for a man of such medium built stature, it was really creepy.

"Ahh… where are my manners? Of course… let me introduce myself," the man said, making a rather breathy gesture as he looked down upon the two kids at the foot of the staircase. "My name is Von S. Heinkel, Lord from the land to the far East. I am the new owner of this estate or… what the people of this village like to call it a… Kingdom… and I humbly welcome you to my home. It truly is an honor to be graced with the presence of such a young lad, and the young… former princess of this here palace."

Konoka, frowning stood up, pulling herself up by Naruto's clothes, who seemed more interested in staring at his opponents more then caring about the girl using him as a rope to get back up.

"Listen you… GIVE ME BACK MY MUM AND MY KINGDOM! You have no right to take it from us!" Konoka shouted, mustering up all the courage she had in her. Naruto smiled slightly.

"Think you have the muscle to wrestle it back from this guy?" he whispered. The red-head frowned and glared back at the boy.

"That's why I brought you, wasn't it?" Naruto shrugged.

"I guess so…"

"Hahaha…" Heinkel chuckled, rubbing his forehead and grinning down at the girl who addressed him. Adjusting his hat, and sneered. "Ma lady, I'm afraid you are mistaken. With your mother in my grasp, and you returning to fall into it as well, I now wield all the pieces necessary to rule this land and its people! You see, you can't rule without royal blood, and since I don't have any myself, I simply claim it as my own property!"

"Tsk… what a load of crap…" Naruto spat, surprising Konoka and catching the ears of Heinkel.

"What was that, kid?"

"All you do is yap-yap-yap! It's boring the crap out of me!" the boy complained, looking up at the man. "Listen, all I came all the way down here for was to fight, have some fun, kill you and make a pretty young girl who made me lunch happy!" The last comment made Konoka blush, and she looked away in a bashful state. "I didn't come down here to listen to your pitiful life story, or know what your plans are. Now which of you bastards am I going to fight first?"

Heinkel growled, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists angrily. "You brat…" He spun around, glaring at his trusted aid and backup. "Don't let another word spill from that boy's mouth! Kill him!"

In a blink of an eye, the ten rogue Chunin reinforcements to the four Jonin shimmered out of sight, and reappeared, surrounding Naruto on all sides. Konoka gasped and clutched onto the by's arm tightly, looking around at all the ninja surrounding them fearfully. Hirano was about to call out, but her movements prompted the tallest of the cloaked figures behind her to take her by the shoulder and hold her back.

Konoka, trembling from head to toe, looked up at her bodyguard desperately.

"W-What… should we do…"

"Just hang tight…" Naruto exclaimed, looking up. His eyes suddenly flashed blood red and the pupils becoming slits, the sight causing Konoka to gasp. This time, when the blonde spoke, his voice was suddenly mixed with the echo of another deep voice, but this one being slightly higher in pitch from the booming voice of a troll, mixed with a vibrant echo. _**"I'll also show you why they call me the Demon of Mount Myobokuzan!"**_

Suddenly, just as the Chunin were preparing to attack, red flames suddenly materialized around Naruto, bubbling slightly as they whipped through the air with a white hot sensation. Konoka gripped the boy's sleeve tighter as she watched the flames surround them. The High Princess, Heinkel, and the Four Jonin watched with shock, awe and interest as the sudden transparent red flames spread out even more and, like the susanoo, encase and surround both Naruto and Konoka protectively.

Gasps, murmurs and shouts were heard when the fire surrounding the two kids suddenly formed into the outline and shape of a fox covered in fire. Bright eyes shone from the black imprints of eyes, along with elongated teeth, a number of tails, and razor sharp claws protruded from the shapely mists of red. However, the more the being took shape, the more it became just as real, and as soon as it reached a size many times bigger then Naruto and the ninja surrounding him put together, the claws that had formed from the mist, when they touched the ground they craved nice gashes into them, cracking stone and literally melting the ground around it from the heat produced.

Konoka looked around her, seeing the effect the demon visage was having on the enemy, before looking up at Naruto. The boy was smiling normally, eyes back to blue and shining in a warm, orange hue produced by the chakra surrounding him. The red headed girl's eyes shimmered as she gazed up at the boy, whose handsome features and confidence seemed to glow with the radiance of his strength. And even though they were surrounded by danger, the girl couldn't help but move in closer to the boy, as he protected her from the ninja surrounding them in the courtyard.

Once the blood red mist-fire took full shape, the giant fox growled and let out a loud bark, a terrifying echo of that of a spiritual entity that rebounded off the walls and shook the foundations of the palace itself. As soon as it did so, the image of the Kyuubi leered down at the surrounding ninja, baring its fangs and growling threateningly. Not wanting to tangle with the fearsome beast, the Chunin ran for it, leaping over either the walls or… going through what remained of the entrance to the Kingdom, screaming and running in terror.

The moment they were gone, the Kyuubi cloak surrounding Naruto and Konoka dissipated, leaving the two standing amidst the burnt and melted stone unscathed. Having witnessed with unexpected turn of events, Heinkel rubbed his chin thoughtfully, giving Naruto a very considerate class of stare, and analyzing the boy more carefully.

"Hmm… you intrigue me, boy," the tailor dressed man exclaimed, smiling positively. "You've got some interesting potential."

Naruto smirked. "That must have been what your other lackey thought before I crushed his neck under my elbow." Reaching into his trench-coat, Naruto pulled out the vial of berries he was carrying with him, showing them the contents. "I've figured out the secret behind how you guys do battle. Using nature's fruit to make you feel no pain eh… that's kind of a cheat don't you think?"

One of the cloaked figured moved forward, but was stopped by one of his comrades, and Heinkel blinked in surprise. "You defeated Mao?"

"Oh… so that's what his name was. Well… I don't think it matters to him anymore. But I must say; he was pretty tough…"

"For someone to be able to defeat Mao… is truly a feat very few could pull off," the white cloaked figure that stopped one of the others said, walking forward. Reaching up through his cloak, the figure with the rough, gravely voice removed the straw hat he wore, tossing it aside along with his mask and cloak. When these items were removed, the figure was revealed to be a middle-sized man, about the same height as Heinkel but around his late sixties, dressed in strange battle armor of blue and grey, and had his black hair tied up in a high bun and three long dreadlocks hanging down his back. The armor he wore resembled an old warrior outfit similar to the Terracotta warriors Naruto had seen, with gold and black being the main colors.

The man grinned down at the boy as Naruto looked him over. "I'm curious… as to just how strong this boy is to be able to defeat someone like Mao!" Reaching behind him, the man drew a bundle of sticks wrapped in robe, which he then unveiled to be a three section staff with hooked blades on both ends of the weapon. Loosening his grip, the man spun it around him and then snapped it to the side, where the two sections of the center piece tightened around the middle, and became a duel bladed, single staff. "The boy will be a very prestigious kill for me. If you will permit me, Heinkel-sama?"

The man dressed in white chuckled and nodded his head. "Of course, of course… go ahead, Saji. But don't kill him just yet. Make sure there is enough left in the boy afterwards so that we can torture him!"

"My pleasure!" With a yell, the man launched himself down the stairs at such speed he literally shimmered in between steps. Hirano's eyes widened.

"No! Konoka!" she shouted.

Naruto, frowning, raised his right hand and bit into his thumb, slapping his hands together and dropping them to the ground in a quick summoning motion, smoke exploded around him and Konoka. The next thing Konoka knew was her being carried off by the collar by a large, horse-sized Seven-tailed white fox. The fox leapt away, carrying Konoka to safety, with its summons' orders following her.

"KEEP HER SAFE, MOKA!" Naruto shouted, leaping out of the smoke himself to the left. He was quickly pursued by Saji, staff held back and ready to strike.

Falling back, Naruto took a stance, drawing two kunai from behind and readying for combat. The rogue warrior came in swiftly, striking out with a flurry of movement the boy did not expect. The first strike forced the blonde to roll under, but that was followed by a series of slashes, strikes, stabs, jabs and thrusts that forced Naruto to defend each and every one. He knew that the staff was bladed on both ends, and with this man's speed, might have him lost an arm if he attempted a strike of his own at this point.

Gritting his teeth, Naruto slid under another slash, only to have him stop in mid-slide and spin on his back, kicking out at the man's feet as the other bladed end of the staff soared just centimeters above his face. Saji tripped up a little, but quickly recovered and detached one end of his weapon. The chain attached to the other section allowed him to spin it, and slash in an unpredictable way at his opponent. The boy leapt off of the ground as the weapon carved a nice gash into it, and he dashed away quickly, putting distance between him and his opponent.

However, this case of distance came with a sudden twist when the second of the man's staff extended quite a way when he swung out at Naruto. Moving his kunai to block, the man's staff struck, and the blade sliced across his arm, the boy letting out a wince as blood was drawn. Saji grinned and charged at him again, spinning the section of his staff that was detached like a kusanagari, and began slashing out with the chained weapon.

Naruto retreated backwards, ducking, rolling, sliding, and jumping over and under attacks made at a distance by his opponent, attempting to lose him when he maneuvered through a long isle of statues moving through the courtyard. Saji struck out relentlessly, chopping the statues and their foundations down into rubble.

Hiding behind one in particular for cover, Naruto furrowed his brow and ducked when another attack sliced the statue he was hiding behind in half from the waist, before leaping into the air and kicking some of the rubble at his opponent in mid-flight, testing his defenses. The flying marble caught Saji by surprise, a lot of it hitting him in the head and torso, but spinning his three section staff around him expertly, blocked a lot of the larger pieces. After which he extended the loose end of his staff more so, and slashed out at the still airborne shinobi.

Naruto brought both his kunai around, twirling them in his fingers before tossing them both downwards, the first one knocking the staff end slashing up at him in mid-strike, knocking it out of momentum, while the other was aimed at Saji. The warrior, leapt to the side, slicing his chained weapon around and bringing the other staff-end around, before slashing out at Naruto again in response. The blonde landed, leaping to the side as the attack came, tearing up the stone floor and statue remains.

Naruto rolled upon landing, getting to his feet and leaping backwards through the air. Bringing his arms around, he flung them outwards, unleashing a shower of shuriken down upon the attacking warrior. Saji saw it coming, and with fluent motion, zigzagged through the shower, avoiding each and everyone, and shimmering as he moved. The next thing Naruto knew upon landing was the next attack flying towards him. Slashing his blade out, the armor clad rogue ninja lashed at him, only his attack suddenly became blurred, flashing with an unidentified energy cloak. Eyes widening, the young blonde only had a split second to step back before the curved blade of the staff end slashed across his chest. It penetrated the armor, and gashed the skin, Naruto letting out a yelp and coming to kneel on the ground, clutching the wound across his chest.

Gritting his teeth, Naruto sweated nervously as he watched the man twirl the weapon around him through the air, before withdrawing it back into a single staffed weapon.

"_What the hell was that…?"_

"NARUTO!" Konoka cried out from behind the fox guarding her on the sidelines near the inner great wall surrounding the courtyard. "DON'T GIVE UP! COME ON! YOU CAN BEAT HIM!"

"I'm working on it!" Naruto shouted back, before looking back at his opponent.

Saji grinned maniacally down at him, raising an eyebrow and his weapon in front of him as Naruto slowly got to his feet, resisting the pain from the deep wound he just received from the Jonin.

"_This man is much more powerful than the last one I fought. He channels chakra into his weapon, and mixed with his great speed and pain immunity… can produce unorthodox attacks…"_

With an animalistic growl, the man charged at Naruto spinning his staff around to throw off the boy for this next attack. Swiping his thumb under his nose, the spiky haired blonde crouched low and charged as well, drawing one of the elongated kunai he took from his last opponent. Saji swiped at him, Naruto leaping over him in a flip, striking down at the man as he sailed over him. He struck the Jonin right across the flesh between his shoulder and neck, cutting in deeply and drawing a spray of blood.

Landing behind the man, whose movements were staggered only briefly, the armor clad warrior spun around and slashed at Naruto again, who rolled forward and slashed at the man with his kunai, only for him to leap back and slash down at him again. The young ninja expertly shuffled and pivoted around the man, elbowing him in the side and knocking him stumbling over. However, Saji returned this with an outward slash, which Naruto barely avoided himself, and got a small cut across his cheek.

Sliding to a stop several meters away, Naruto reached into his trench-coat sleeve, and throwing his arm outwards, sent a couple more shuriken his attacker's way. Saji blocked the first two, but was struck by the three to follow, all of them impaling the right side of his chest, and the space between his arm and shoulder armor. The man laughed and dashed forward, uncoupling the two staff ends connected to the center one, and lashed out furiously at the boy.

Naruto was once again forced to avoid and block Saji's strange attacks, the blurs his furiously spinning staff ends making it incredibly hard to predict when the next strike would come. After shifting round and kicking out at his attacker, Naruto unexpectedly hit an afterimage of the man as he suddenly appeared behind him. The spiky haired boy spotted him, and managed to duck, bending over backwards to avoid the man's next attack, the blade cutting only a few strands of hair as it went straight over him.

The young ninja, using the strength in his legs and body, spun to his right from his bent over position, sending two kicks up into Saji's face, breaking his nose and staggering him. The man laughed it off and sent another strike at him, only for his pole to be blocked by a jab from Naruto, who then punched Saji across the face with the same fist, knocking him over. But the balance lost by the man was then reacquired, and pivoting round, slashed at Naruto at the chest. The boy crouched low to dodge, but then saw a kick flying straight at his face. Crossing his arms, he blocked it, pushing off the ground for extra leverage and sliding along it on his side.

Slapping his hands together, Naruto formed several hand seals, and taking in a deep breath, unleashed his technique.

"_Fire Style: Grand Fire Ball Technique!"_

A gush of hot wind, followed by a ball of red-hot fire infused with his chakra shot out from Naruto's mouth, propelling him further across the ground, and immediately engulfing the attacking warrior whole. Saji gasped as he was quickly enveloped in red hot flames, shielding his face as he was torched alive by the massive fireball. Quickly followed by being enveloped by the wall of flames, came an explosion of such magnitude, it carved a trench and crater the size of a football field, with the shockwave knocking Naruto flying and to the wall, as well as prompting his summoned fox to shield Konoka from the blast radius.

Soon enough, the explosion died out, and Naruto, smacked bang against the wall, slowly got to his feet, looking towards the smoking ash clouds of his attack's aftermath.

However, just as he was beginning to think his opponent got disintegrated in the fire, the clouds suddenly parted, and out shot and still very much alive Saji. The man let out a mad-man's laugh as he charged, spinning his weapon in his grasp and readying to strike. Within two seconds he was upon Naruto, covering a distance of about fifty meters, and the attack he struck out at him with carved a huge gash in the side of the wall, literally making it crumble into rubble. Naruto on the other hand had leapt clean over him, tossing several kunai his way.

Impaled in the back several times, the still fighting, burnt rogue ninja turned around and grinned, watching Naruto land a good distance away from him.

No man could have been in a worse state. Not only was the man only wearing a third of his armor left, mostly the bottom half of it, but the right side of his body was completely burnt to a crisp, blackened and crumbling like coal, while his other half was burnt red, with huge skin inflammations and scars. He wore the torn remains of his armor, and his hair was singed away on the right hand side, while the left remained frizzy and smoking. His weapon was still intact, his body still held a descent shape, and on top of that, he was still on fire, his back literally a lit with flames.

"_Oh yeah, this just keeps getting better and better,"_ Naruto thought.

"Pain is but a stranger to me!" Saji exclaimed, swinging his weapon around him, some of his skin falling off from his left side. The sight of the roasted, yet still standing warrior made Konoka quiver, holding her hands up to her mouth as she stared at him with wide eyes. The rest of the crowd watching from the top of the stairs were either very intrigued or a little shocked themselves. "Come on, boy! You can do much better then that! FIGHT ME RIGHT!"

Naruto gritted his teeth and took a stance. "Alright then! COME!"

"RAAAARRGGHH!" the man roared, charging Naruto down. He slashed out at him, with the same speed, agility and strength he had before. The young boy leapt and dodged the first strikes, before clashing kunai with the man's own weapon. Having watched his opponent fight long enough, he knew how the three section staff worked, and proceeded to attack inside the man's range and defenses.

Drawing another kunai, and spinning it between his fingers, Naruto stepped around and ducked under the man's attacks, before bringing his weapon to bare, slicing into the man's chest and torso. Saji staggered, swinging his three section staff around to full extent. Naruto smirked and leapt back, avoiding the strikes and tossing kunai enflamed with his own wind chakra straight at the man. He blocked the first to be thrown, but was struck full on by the second to the right side of his chest. It punctured his lung, and flew straight through him, and going straight through the wall behind him.

Dropping to his knee, Saji bent over and coughed up blood, choking on air before looking up through a blurred vision at Naruto, a grin spreading across his face.

"IS THAT ALL YAH GOT!" he screamed charging at the boy, tightening the weapon so that it became a staff again.

Naruto frowned and leapt backward again in retreat, forming a few hand signs and sucking in air.

"_Wind Release; Dragon Tornado Ball!"_

The attack blasted from the boy's lips, shooting across the courtyard and striking the burnt warrior full on, extinguishing the flames, and stopping him in his tracks. Saji met the attack full on, crossing his arms over his chest to defend himself against the harsh winds, as they cut clean scars into his sides, arms and legs, and ripped the remains of his armor off, leaving him in tattered shorts and burnt mesh. Once the shockwave of the winds died ut, leaving a nice trench carved into the ground, the man got back up right and continued his charge, blood dripping from his mouth, eyes, nose and ears, and coughing up a whole lot more. Laughing, the warrior who could feel no pain leapt through the air, and brought his weapon to bear, bringing it around to strike down at the boy.

Witnessing the man take the full force of his second technique, Naruto gritted his teeth and took a stance, grabbing his tanto blade and bringing it around, the small blade flashing as he swiped out with it. Crouching low, Naruto leapt through the air at Saji, meeting him half way. As they both struck out with their attacks, both of them yelled at the top of their lungs as they struck.

"DIEEE!" Saji roared.

"OUT OF MY WAY!" Naruto returned, ducking underneath the strike the burnt man sent at him and slashing across the man's torso.

In that instant, the boy's blade never touched the man, but the blue wind chakra enveloping and extending out of his blade did. With the length of a katana, and even sharper still, Naruto sliced straight through the man with ease, the spray of blood filling the air as he sailed past the warrior, and Saji seeing only the stone cold floor before both halves of him fell to the ground, lifeless. At the same time, Naruto landed, performing a roll before ending it with a finishing stance, sheathing his weapon back into the sheath on his back.

Konoka and Hirano gaped in shock, as did Heinkel as he watched one of his most trusted and strongest guard fall dead. The other Jonin looking on were all the more interested, yet were surprised themselves when they watched Saji die, joining Mao in the afterlife.

Frowning, Heinkel turned to the three remaining cloaked Jonin, pointing at the tallest one and second tallest, both of which were standing on either side of the shortest one, who was holding High Princess Hirano by the arm.

"Fuugo… Kinako… kill that boy!" the man ordered. "I'll pay you Mao and Saji's share if you do!"

Nodding, the two he addressed removed their cloaks, masks and hats, and started down the stairs, leaving the smallest of the guard holding onto the High Princess. Even so, the one who was reached up and removed the mask, but his or her face was still hidden beneath the shadows of the straw hat. When the silent warrior did, he turned to watch the next fight with great interest.

The taller of the two cloaked figures proceeding down the stairs was a man around his early thirties dressed in royal battle robes, similar to the outfit worn by a Chinese Soldier serving under Emperor Qianlong, only he didn't wear a helmet, wore a yellow beaded necklace, and had his long brown hair tied back into a long ponytail, a long mustache and goatee. Furthermore, the man was armed with a jian, crafted of his own design. The other figure joining him was much shorter, and a woman at that, around thirteen or fifteen years of age. She had blue hair, the top tied up into a bun with hangs hanging over a beautiful, flawless skinned face. To top it off, she wore light red and brown armor, with ninja mesh spandex, and was armed with duel knives or small swords.

Once they reached the foot of the stairs, the girl named Kinako smirked and charged immediately into battle, drawing her swords as she dashed across the courtyard at a surprising speed. She sprinted towards Naruto, who was also walking towards them in turn, and was forced to take a defensive stance when he aw the first of the two running at him.

Drawing a kunai, Naruto ducked and blocked the strikes Kinako sent at him, maneuvering around her as the young girl attacked with amazing fury. He slashed out at her as well, their blades clashing loudly and sparks flying between them as they engaged in close-quarter combat.

Ducking a slash, the boy elbowed the girl in the stomach, whom leapt back with a grunt and thrust both blades forward, slashing them across with speed and accuracy. Naruto blocked one blade descending upon him, but the second one streak across his left shoulder, carving a nice gash in it. He yelped at the blow, but then retaliated with his own attack, slashing across the girl's abdomen, only to miss when she leapt back to avoid.

Kinako retaliated, leaping at him and slashing out at his head, her attacks blocked by his kunai as he backed away. As she pressed on with her assault, Naruto spotted a opening in her swing, and managed to catch her wrist in his free, left hand. Twisting it around, he forced her to relinquish her sword, and tried to bring her to her knees. Growling, the girl attempted to break his grip, pushing him back so that his back hit the side of a remarkably still standing statue. She then leapt over him, reversing the hold he had on her and kicking him in the back, sending him straight into some rubble.

Naruto winced when he fell face first into the rubble, but quickly spun on his hands, and leapt back to his feet, avoiding another strike from the girl, whom had both her swords back in her grasp. Growling, the wounded boy leapt back, putting distance between him and the girl. However, he soon realized that this girl had a trick up her sleeve.

Chuckling, the girl leapt to the side and threw her sword spiraling at Naruto. The boy, caught by surprise, brought his kunai up to defend. The blade clashed with his, sparks flying, and the force of the throw sending him flying back into a statue sitting behind him. He smashed it to bits as he flew through it, and landed hard in the remains and rubble, groaning in agony. He looked up to see the girl's sword return to her, realizing that her weapons are attached to thin cables linked to gauntlets under her forearm guards.

Twirling her weapons, Kinako chuckled and took a stance, her swords flashing from the sun.

"You're good, kid. Come on… I'm having a lot of fun!"

Naruto grinned as he sat up in the statue remains. He was exhausted and aching all over, but he too was enjoying himself.

"Glad to make people happy," the boy replied.

A shadow over him caught his attention and he looked up, seeing the other Jonin flying threw the air and descending straight down at him, jian held high above his head. Naruto gasped and pushed off the ground to the left, the big man's blade crashing straight down onto the stone floor where he was once laying, creating a massive crack in the ground when it impacted.

Back-flipping to a stance, Naruto flicked his left wrist to his right, a cluster of five shuriken appearing. He threw them at once at the man, hoping they'd hit. But the girl leapt in front of her comrade and blocked them all with her blades, grinning as she did so before charging Naruto down, her partner following close behind.

Growling, the young blonde charged as well, meeting the two rogue warriors head to head, a kunai held in each hand. He attacked them, his blades clashing with theirs as they both struck at him in unison. Breaking away to surround the boy, Fuugo and Kinako both moved in and out of attacks as they exchanged blows with the boy, sparks flying as their blades connected with his, him defending and in turn attacking at each opportunity as he leapt over, and rolled and slid under each and every attack they made. Taking the initiative at every point, Naruto would attempt to inflict damage on his bigger opponent, knowing that he was posing the most trouble with his superior strength and speed.

Lashing out at the boy, Fuugo attempted to slice the boy in two at the waist, only to have him leap on top of the flat side of his blade and flip over him. In mid-flip, Naruto slashed at the man's arm and shoulders, slicing away the man's robes and carving nice gashes into the warrior's upper body, drawing blood. The man chuckled and spun around, lashing out again, only to miss as Naruto ducked under it just in time upon landing. The boy charged in, clenching his right fist and driving a punch straight into the man's side, striking a soft point he knew existed.

The blow shook the man's body, but didn't pain him at all. All Fuugo did was cough up a whole cup full of blood, before returning the boy's blow with an attack of his own. Naruto gritted his teeth and crouched under the next attack, leaping through the space between the man's legs, bringing his kunai to bear as he slashed at his inner thighs, cutting them open and drawing more blood. The jian wielding warrior stumbled forward, getting to his knees and turning, smirking as the boy reengaged Kinako, both of them engaging in an amazing display of attacks and strikes.

Kinako growled as she attempted to hit the nimble boy, whom leapt and shuffled around her attacks easily, doing his absolute best not to be hit by her attacks. However, in the flurry of the attacks he was avoiding, Naruto spotted a wide strike she made, and pivoted around her thrust, slashing his kunai across her upper arm and shoulder. The girl let out a cry of pain and stumbled forward, dropping the sword in her left hand and clutching her shoulder.

The blonde paused for a moment, taking a defensive stance as she watched the girl wheel around and glare at him. He blinked.

"_She can still feel pain, eh?"_

He didn't have much time to dwindle on it, as the other warrior suddenly appeared behind him and, holding his jian over his head, thrust it straight down on top of him. Naruto rolled out to the side, crouching and charging back at the man, clashing kunai with his lance like weapon. The older man chuckled and forced him back, sending him into an attacking Kinako. The spiky haired blonde growled and maneuvered under a neck-aimed slash from the girl, sliding clean under it. He quickly slid to a stop, now standing several meters away from his opponents.

He panted heavily, knowing that this close-quarter fighting was more fatiguing on his body then using his ninjutsu.

Shaking his head to recover, Naruto formed his familiar hand seal, and suddenly, puffs of smoke exploded around him, and when they cleared, was joined by twenty or so copies. The multitude of copies smirked as the two rogue warriors backed away a little at the sight of them.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" they all said at once, before all of them charged at once.

Soon, both Fuugo and Kinako were forced into close-quarter combat with the twenty young blondes, clashing against a hail storm of kunai and physical attacks. The two warriors plowed through the flocks with their weapons, slicing the clones in half with each one they managed to take out disappearing in puff of smoke. When the numbers were thinned down to around five of them, the two Jonin were still left wondering which one was the real one.

Eventually as Fuugo was making an attack on three that decided to single him out, two hands suddenly shot out of the ground and grabbed his blood covered ankles, and he looked down in surprise to see the real Naruto grinning up at him. In a blink of an eye, the warrior was bombarded by punches, kicks knees and elbows from the three other clothes, along with a few stabs from the kunai. Growling in frustration, he slashed out at his attackers, his large bladed staff meeting the defenses of the three clones.

Kinako growled as she was forced back by the two clones attacking her with kunai, finding that these two had the same capacity of fighting as the original. Growling, she dashed forward, slashing the two in half simultaneously. However, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted on the pair's backs that they had two pieces of paper stuck on them with strange markings. It was only till both her blades sliced through them and ignited them did she realize exactly what they were. The whole thing came to her in slow motion.

"Shit! Paper bombs!"

_**BOOOM!**_

The explosion that engulfed Kinako knocked Fuugo off of his feet, Naruto releasing him with the opening of his surprise attack. The blast knocked he jian wielding warrior flying, scorching his left side. Kinako on the other hand, in the midst of the fiery explosion of the two paper bombs, was thrown out of it, bruised, scarred, her swords snapped from their cables and clothes burnt. The girl flew through the air with a scream, and crashed into the far wall. The rubble that crumbled to the floor from the imprint she made was soon joined by the unconscious girl.

Fuugo on the other hand was still standing, and when he was up, took a defensive stance. Just then, Naruto shot out of the earth with a roar, sending a fist up to his face. The man staggered back, bleeding heavily from the mouth. Chuckling, he charged forward and lashed out at the boy, who skipped back across the stone floor, evading the man's strikes.

Skidding to a stop just outside of the small crater made by his paper bombs, Naruto drew his tanto and leapt at the man, pumping chakra into it and creating a wind blade. Ducking underneath a thrust, the boy then slashed upwards, slicing off the man's left arm. Fuugo leapt back chuckling and lashed out again with his blade, with Naruto blocking the strike. However, the taller man leapt forward, and kneed him in the face, sending him to the ground in the middle of the crater.

Naruto was about to get up, but the now one armed Fuugo slammed his foot down on his chest, and held him down. Laughing, he brought his jian blade right above the by's head, pulling back, and thrust straight down, intent on impaling the boy once and for all.

Gritting his teeth, the young ninja pinned to the earth fumbled around blindly with his hands for something to defend himself with. His fingers tapped something, and the boy raised an eyebrow, finding the handle and half of the remains of one of Kinako's sword. Smirking, he picked it up, and just as Fuugo was thrusting down with his weapon, suddenly found his weapon stray of course, and a splash of blood streak across as his hand was sliced clean off. Stumbling back, the Jonin growled as now both his hands were cut off.

Grinning, Naruto leapt off the ground and straight at his opponent, landing on the man's chest, the blonde stabbed his blade straight down into Fuugo's skull, penetrating straight through to his lower jaw. Blood spraying everywhere, the boy leapt off of Fuugo, at the same time the staggering corpse of the man fell to the ground.

Landing, the boy let out a sigh as he watched his next kill bleed on the ground. Shrugging, he tossed the broken sword he was using to the side, before turning towards Kinako. The girl was still lying unconscious on the ground, and seeing her in that state, chose not to finish it with her. After all, it was against his person and heart to kill a woman.

Staggering a bit, the boy turned and looked up at Heinkel, High Princess Hirano, and the last of the Jonin. But what he met a few seconds later upon landing his eyes on them was not just them, but a sudden fireball that shot up out of nowhere and right in front of and around him. Shortly following, a fiery explosion consumed him and instantaneously, Naruto was sent flying…

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


	6. The Grand Finale

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_The Grand Finale_

Naruto yelled out as he was burnt and blasted back by the explosion, and sent flying towards the front gates he had knocked down. In mid-flight, he quickly regained his composure and, forming a hand seal, created two shadow doppelgangers in the way of his flight path, which caught him and stopped him in his tracks. The two Narutos helped him to his feet, and then dissipated after he managed to get back his balance.

The young blonde glared towards the staircase, where he saw the man in the white suit holding out his hand towards the boy, a large grin on his face. He chuckled when he saw the by look up through the clouds of smoke, nothing the massive ash imprint of the blast in the stone floor across the courtyard.

"I'm impressed you've managed to fight on this long, ma boy. Any other opponent would already be turning over on a frying pan in hell right now!" Heinkel exclaimed, bringing his hand to his lips and blowing on the fingers. "You… however… you are different. Lad… you are in a completely different league of your own. Not even the ninja of the Land of Wind, Land of Grass or Land of Snow could defeat me or my loyal guard. I credit you for pushing us this far…"

The spiky haired youngster blinked as he looked at the man. Hirano was watching in silent shock and worry, whereas Konoka was overly concerned for the well being of Naruto. He was bleeding a lot from the wounds he had sustained already, and after being hit full on by that man's otherworldly techniques, his clothes were shredded, and now he was covered with burns and bruises. She cupped her hands over her mouth as she looked between both her protector, and the ones holding her mother hostage.

"_What is up with this man's techniques… argh?" _Naruto stepped forward, but suddenly collapsed to his knee when he felt his whole body shudder, and his leg give way. Gritting his teeth to bite back the pain, he glared back up through a blurry vision up at the tailor suit man at the top of the stairs at a distance of two football fields away from him. _"My body is fried!"_

"Let me guess, all your successes are based solely around your abilities," Naruto groaned. "You can emit explosive blasts of chakra, an unorthodox fire release technique, concentrated through the seals drawn into your gloves! That's what gives you your superhuman abilities…"

"Oh? So you've figured it out?" Heinkel asked, placing his hand on his forehead and rubbing his fingertips into it. "As it turns out, Satan's hands are easier to possess then the hands of the divine. I love your land and your culture so much! It gives me all the time I need to explore your abilities, and harness your weaknesses!"

"Heh… don't act so proud! A man like you didn't even have to work hard to achieve your strength; you just stole it from somebody else… someone more deserving of that strength! You make me laugh!" Naruto got to his feet, cracking his neck from left to right. He groaned at the strain he felt on his shoulders. _"I feel like my body is about to fall apart!" _"You think that by taking advantage of these people just because they are weak means you can play God with everyone? Not gonna happen, buddy! This is all gonna end right here and right now!"

The man in white smirked and turned, glancing at his remaining loyal servant still holding Hirano captive.

"Stay here and hold the fort… I'm going to have some fun with this one!" Heinkel, adjusting his gloves, began walking down the stairs, grinning evilly as he fixed his eyes on his target. Upon reaching the bottom, he stopped, cracking his fingers as he prepared for combat. Naruto in turn took a defensive stance, drawing a pair of kunai, twirling them in his fingers, and faced his opponent down with a serious expression in play. "You know of my abilities, yet you still wish to challenge me? Maybe you would consider joining me instead of fighting. I pay well…"

"No thanks," Naruto replied casually. "I've seen what happens to your lackeys. They get a poor health insurance policy and there isn't much job security either!"

Heinkel's grin widened. "Oh… well then that's too bad!"

The man raised his right hand and a snapped his fingers, a fireball suddenly shooting up out of nowhere around Naruto, and detonating immediately, sending a huge cloud of dust and debris flying into the air. The man wearing the suit placed his left hand on his hat to keep it still from the wafting air currents of the blast whipping around him. He watched with glee as his opponent went up in flames and clouds.

"Dear me… is that all? Huh…"

A red and yellow blur shot out of the dust cloud, and in that moment, Heinkel could see the young boy charging at him, both kunai held back as he ran full pelt, covering ground in flashes as such proving his speed to be above normal. Grinning, the white dressed man raised his right hand, extending his fingers and preparing to launch another attack, but before he could do so, Naruto threw both kunai straight at him, the blades lit by his wind chakra, and the velocity of their throw increased by his sprinting pace.

The blades pierced Heinkel's glove just as he was charging another attack, and the man recoiled in agony, and he clutched his wrist as the blades burrowed in deep. Gritting his teeth, the man growled and looked up to see Naruto still on the charge, drawing his tanto and readying to strike.

Acting quickly, as the boy was only a several yards away; Heinkel raised his other, undamaged hand, and snapped his fingers, a flicker of flames emerging before detonating right in the boy's path. The blonde leapt to the left and around it, avoiding the explosions and hooking around to the man's blind spot where his guard was lowered. Once there, Naruto charged once more, coming in from Heinkel's right.

Spotting his target, the man dressed in white spun round to meet Naruto, who struck out at him with his short blade, but extended his chakra through it, increasing the blade's length. However, just as the attack was about to strike, the crafty foreigner unexpectedly detonated another fireball right in the center of him and his opponent's proximity, the explosion hitting Naruto full on, yet leaving Heinkel untouched.

The young shinobi let out a yell as he was sent flying into the air, his clothes now more or less scorched. Within that second, Heinkel, using speed unanticipated by the blonde, appeared airborne right above Naruto, and before he could react, was suddenly kicked straight down into the courtyard's floor, hard.

The crater he made and the dust cloud he sent into the air had Konoka respond in shock and fear, and she dashed forward in an attempt to help him, but was blocked off by the white, seven-tailed fox protecting her.

"NARUTO-KUN!"

When the smoke cleared, Naruto was revealed lying sprawled out in the middle of a ten meter wide crater, eyes open and face stoically staring up into the sky, blood dribbling from both corners of his lips. Groaning, he sat up, rubbing his gut and chest, where he knows a couple of his ribs were cracked.

"Dammit to all thirteen levels of hell… I'm going to be sore tomorrow…"

Just as he was getting to his knees, he heard two feet touching down right in front of him, and he looked up to see Heinkel standing right in front of him, left hand pocketed and right hand extended. A smirk on his face, he tilted his head at the boy and spoke.

"Do you have any last words before I send you to the first level of hell, ma boy?"

Scowling, Naruto rubbed the back of his head, before looking back up at the man. "Not really… accept maybe… save a place for me?" Flicking his hand out behind his head, a kunai appeared, flashing in the sunlight out of the tall man's line of sight.

Grinning, chakra crackled around Heinkel's hand as he prepared to finish the fight.

"Too bad…"

Then, he unleashed his attack, with Naruto leaping up and rearing to strike in response!

But then, just as both their attacks could make anymore progress beyond the point of initiation, Heinkel suddenly jerked forward, causing Naruto to stop and look up at him oddly for a moment. Then, in the midst of suspended animation, the man dressed in a white suit coughed up blood, groaning in agony as he slowly and shakily looked behind him.

There, holding a katana firmly in a one-handed grasp, impaled in his back right through to his front, was his other Jonin bodyguard, who had left the duty of guarding the High Princess to attack him. Naruto, Konoka and Hirano gaped at the sight, whilst anyone else who was watching the confrontation, mainly the guards posted on the surrounding wall of the palace and Kinako who was just regaining consciousness, were in states of silent and confusion. All the while, Heinkel was still trying to hold onto whatever life he had ebbing away as he glared back at his most trusted aid.

"C-Chou-Un…w…why… did you…"

"I'm sorry, sir," the warrior, a young girl as it appeared, replied while looking up at the man from under her straw hat. Flawless skin, and stunning green eyes matching the silver hair hanging back behind her, was the sight that greeted him. "But I cannot allow you to kill this young boy. Your actions are out of order, and are considered by all means without a shred of honor."

"Y-you bitch… I… I thought we had an agreement!"

"We did… but that agreement expired when you began acting out of line, killing innocent people to get your way," the girl replied, a voice of an angel from what Naruto could hear. And although the boy was still stunned at this turn of events, couldn't help but watch what would happen in the next minute or so.

Heinkel grinned, his body trembling and attempting to stay upright as he exchanged verbal blows with his hired assailant.

"What are you… b-blabbering on about? D-Don't tell me… you haven't k-killed others… to meet your own goals… or fulfill… any personal gain?"

"You're right, I haven't," Chou-Un replied, glaring up at him. "Throughout all my life, I have never slain another human being who was innocent or pure, but have defended myself in light of certain circumstances. Yet there has been no person strong enough to be a challenge to me, and hence was not worthy of my blade. But now… thanks to being under your employ, I have found the perfect adversary."

Heinkel choked, and he fell to his knees. Chou-Un sighed and she gripped her sword tighter.

"Closing my eyes, I look away from you as your soul enters the spirit world, and your body returns to the earth," the girl said quietly.

In one swift motion, the girl pulled her sword out from him, spun it, and upon sheathing it to where a audible 'click' was heard, the body of her employer fell over lifeless, right at Naruto's feet.

Getting to his feet, Naruto gripped his side where the gash from his last opponent was, as well as a couple of cracked ribs. Letting out a sigh, the boy staggered backwards as he watched the last remaining Jonin enemy turn to him. With a smirk, the silver haired girl removed the straw hat from her head, and unclasped her cloak, throwing it into the wind. Chou-Un revealed herself to be a rather striking young girl around Naruto's age, armed with a long, custom made katana, and dressed in a short orange and blue, flower patterned kimono top (revealing a very well toned figure underneath, as she only wore a fishnet outfit under that) and black spandex shorts and wooden sandals, Chou-Un was more like a Ronin rather than a Jonin.

Upon revealing herself completely to the boy, she looked over towards Konoka and the Seven-Tailed Fox guarding them. She gestured over her shoulder towards her mother still standing at the top of the stairs, still confused as to what was going on.

"Go to your mother, young miss. I no longer have a reason to be holding onto her…"

Konoka, cautious at first, did so, and ran up towards her mother, who embraced her with a warm smile and tears in her eyes. The two cried in each other's arms, overjoyed to finally be able to see each other again after a long month of torment and loneliness.

Turning to the blonde, Chou-Un reached into her kimono and, under a weary gaze from the boy, pulled out a vial of berries. She held it out to him, Naruto looking at her with a raised eyebrow.

"For your wounds… it will help ease the pain…"

Blinking, Naruto chuckled and stood up straighter. Drawing his tanto from its sheath, he twirled it in his finger and held it towards the girl.

"No thanks… I'd rather go with the pain then ease it… it lets me know that I'm alive," the young ninja replied.

Looking at the young man in surprise, Chou-Un then smiled and closed her eyes, tossing the vial of berries aside without a second thought.

"That's good. You are very strong," she replied, stepping to face him completely, flicking her thumb upwards at the handle of her katana, unsheathing it slightly with a click. "To be able to defeat Saji, Fuugo and Kinako simultaneously… you are quite the warrior. I like that…" A blush spread across her lips as she looked upon the ragged boy, seeing him take a step back into a prepared stance.

Channeling chakra into his tanto, a wind blade extended outwards and hummed audibly. The blonde smiled as he looked at her.

"So… what now? Seeing as you've killed your client, you should have no reason to keep on fighting. What's the deal?"

"The only reason I worked for him was to find a worthy enough opponent to test myself against. And here you are," Chou-Un replied, dropping down into a stance, gripping her katana's handle tightly as she focused on her opponent through closed eyes. "My intention was never to hurt or persecute anyone… I have not done so… not in my entire life."

Naruto grinned, he too taking a more prepared fighting stance, chakra blade flickering in the light.

"Good to know that I can honor your request…"

Hirano and Konoka, noticing the two facing off not to far from them, got to their feet, with the young daughter running out to try and intervene. The Seven-Tailed Fox Moka merely stood by the pair, and watched her master face off against the last of the Jonin with interest. The guards that started swarming onto the palace grounds surrounded the area, holding back as the two young warriors faced off against one another.

"Naruto! You've done enough! There's no need for you to keep on fighting! Please!" the girl called out. The blonde turned his head towards her and smiled, winking.

"Don't worry, Konoka… I want this…"

"As do I," Chou-Un stated.

Konoka clasped her hands together, looking on with worry and concern for her savior. However, the reassuring hands of her mother being placed upon her shoulders eased her worry, and she just stood back and watched in silence.

The two young warriors continued to stare each other down, for what appeared to be for an eternity, inside and out. A prolonged stand off was held, both opponents sizing each other up in an attempt to figure out how to defeat the other. Of course, Chou-Un had plenty of time to absorb the young boy's style of fighting when she was watching beforehand; in fact, she just wanted to watch the young, good-looking meat stand her down. Naruto on the other hand was a little concerned about how he would fair against someone as strong as her.

The two of them charged, Chou-Un slashing her katana out, sparks flying as her blade collided with his, wind chakra burning against her blade, but to no effect. This indicated that her blade was more then just a piece of wrapped up, cold steel. The next thing they knew, was their blades swinging through the air at blurred speeds, sparks flying between them, with Chou-Un attacking and Naruto countering in kind, before he was knocked to the side from one swing. He circled her, blade held out as the wind whipped between them.

Gritting his teeth, Naruto took a firmer stance, Chou-Un twirling her blade in a one-handed grip, before reengaging the boy, attacking with a flurry of swipes and thrusts, Naruto maneuvering around a combo and attacking her from her blind-spot. However, she spun around, her blade meeting his thrust and defending, batting it away with a powerful guard break. The blonde swung around her, lashing out again with his blade, their bodies moving round and round as they each tried to find an opening.

Skidding as he thrust forward, Naruto's blade met Chou-Un's in a brief grapple, before the girl's right hand suddenly came round and grabbed his blade wielding arm by the wrist. She twisted them so that her back was to him, and with her sword arm, elbowed him in the face three times, before he kneed her back, breaking her grip. Retaliating, she spun round several times in a quick approach, before kicking him in the side of the head with a shock-wave of a thud, hard, sending him skidding back. Debris flew from the ground and a cloud of dust formed behind the young shinobi from the force of the blow, as he skidded round, pivoting across the ground and slowing to a stop. Gritting his teeth, Naruto let out a growl and charged again.

He swung his air-blade out, impacting her blade as she swung it around, sparks flying once again with a loud clang. Naruto slid underneath her blade and he spun back into a fighting stance, skidding around to stop his momentum and charging Chou-Un's back. The silver haired girl sensed his approach, and crouching low, back-flipped over his thrust, landing on his back and pushing off so that he stumbled forward. Naruto stopped himself from tripping by leaping into the air, and using the forward force of his leap, spun around and threw a cluster of shuriken through the air.

The flying ninja stars curved through the air as they flew at their target. Chou-Un, through closed eyes, sensed their approach, and with a few quick slashes of her sword, knocked them out of the air. Within seconds, Naruto landed, and was on the attack again, letting out a yell as he clashed blades with the girl, who fought with gritted teeth and full strength to hold the young warrior back. She skidded along the ground backwards as Naruto forced his blade against hers. She tried with all her might to push him back, but the stubborn boy, though weakened and exhausted, wouldn't give up.

Growling, Chou-Un opened her eyes, putting her full focus and concentration on the battle. With a shout, she forced the boy off of her, who back-flipped away, landing several feet away and taking another stance. Thy both charged each other again, this time Naruto leaping over her, flipping and striking down at her head and shoulders. Spotting the maneuver, Chou-Un swung her blade upwards, blocking his strikes and sending him over. She spun around and pursued as the boy retreated, sprinting across the battle-torn courtyard, arriving at some boulders and large statue remains.

Sliding to a stop just in front of the boulder, Naruto ran at Chou-Un, who in turn charged straight at him. He swung out, air-blade extending fr greater distance. She blocked it, ducking under a second thrust and passing under the by, who spun around and lashed out, only for her to leap atop of the boulder. He leapt after her, swinging at the girl as she slid down the boulder in an evasion tactics, prompting the boy to follow her. He thrust straight down at her, only for her to back-flip off of the boulder. Upon landing on the ground ten meters away from the boulder, with her blonde shinobi target pulling his chakra blade out of the huge stone, Chou-Un charged aiming for the gigantic rock.

Blade held to her side, the silver haired girl bolted, a sonic boom shooting out as she ran full-speed at the rock, her form literally a grey blur. She went straight through the boulder, the blur surrounded by flashes of streaking blue light, indicating the speed of her numerous slashes and attacks, which cut the boulder to thousands of pieces. Naruto leapt into the air just in time to avoid it, soon to be joined with the rubble.

While in mid-flight amidst the flying chunks of rocks, Naruto spotted his opponent stopping behind him several meters away and in the process of turning to face him. Seeing an opening, the young shinobi spun through the air, using his momentum to his advantage, and kicked several huge chunks of stone straight down at the girl.

Looking up, Chou-Un reacted quickly to the rocks flying her away, and in an amazing display of speed and raw power, sliced out at each individual rock twice, slicing them into pieces and knocking them away. Just as her blade passed through the last chunk of stone, Naruto suddenly materialized in front of her out of thin air in a mid-charge position, blade held back and ready to strike. Chu-Un gasped in shock, and swung her blade out in front of her just in time to block the young man's attack. A cluster of sparks blinded the two as Naruto's momentum in his attack pushed him and his opponent sliding across the stone-paved courtyard.

Stopping after a several meter long slide, Chou-Un pushed Naruto off of her, sending him flipping and spinning through the air in a controlled direction. The boy landed safely away from her, took a stance, and then rushed at her. In his run, he tossed a handful of kunai her direction, forcing her to block them before he struck. She did so, knocking a few away in a hurried attempt to retaliate, but was struck in the arm and shoulder by two, before she was rammed into by the boy, sending them both rolling across the hard floor, her katana flying out of her hand, same as Narutos as the two of them tumbled.

Kicking him off of her, Chou-Un backward rolled to a crouched stance, with Naruto back-flipped through the air, and also landing crouched low. They stared each other down, the blonde swiftly flicking his left wrist out, three kunai appearing between his fingertips, along with a bunch of shuriken. With a yell, he tossed the shuriken forward, the stars curling through the air straight to their opponent at full speed.

Chou-Un blocked them with her bare, hands, getting scarred across the arm by one and wincing when she caught them. The next thing she saw in a blink of an eye was another shower of weapons, this time kunai. Reacting quickly, she tossed the shuriken back, knocking the kunai off-course, breaking them up before they hit her. However, a couple of them scraped her as they flew by, even though they were inches away. Naruto smirked as she yelped and fell to her knees, blood seeping out of her wounds, as he knew that cloaking wind chakra over his kunai had down their job. In a flash, he drew one more kunai and leapt at her, thrusting straight at her.

The silver-haired girl looked up smirking as well, as she saw the young shinobi attack her at break-neck speed. With both hands she jabbed out, grabbing his wrist and twisting it, spinning him around and throwing him behind her, at the same time grabbing the kunai from his hand. Naruto hit the ground via his shoulder and rolled back into a crouched stance, drawing a second kunai and attacking her.

Standing, Chou-Un thrust out with her blade, striking his head long and both of them taking grapple positions. They wrestled against one another and moved across the courtyard, locked in a weapon stand-off. Eventually after glaring hard into each others eyes, they pushed off of one another, each of them tossing a kunai at the other, Chou-Un throwing first, with Naruto aiming just above hers, quickly cloaking his blade with wind chakra. This resulted in his blade slicing straight through the other kunai flying at him, at the same time knocking it downwards. The kunai split in half in mid-fling, and flew straight by him on both sides.

The young girl leapt to the side, avoiding Naruto's kunai, aiming for her sword. Picking it up off the ground, she returned to a solid stance, and spun around, meeting the spiky haired boy as he charged at her. He jabbed out at her, the girl acting quickly and ducking under his punch, the ninja flying towards a statue foundation block right behind her. Naruto landed feet against it, spinning around and roundhouse kicking the girl in the head. She was hit full on by the kick and sent staggering across the ground.

Quickly reassuming a stance, she countered, slashing out at the boy who ducked under her swipe and kicked at her again. Chou-Un leapt back at this, and thrust out at him, only for the boy to, with great agility, leapt over her blade by a couple of inches, and commando roll upon lading, avoiding a second swipe aimed for his torso if he had landed standing upright. Taking a crouched stance, he thrust out at her with a kunai drawn from his back pouch, meeting her blade in a shower of sparks, but was knocked back by a kick.

Skidding along the ground from the force of the girl's blow, Naruto formed a number of hand seals in an instant, and concentrating, unleashed his next attack.

"_Wind Release: Dragon versus Fox!"_

A tornado of wind whirled around him, taking shape, and soon enough, a giant fox shaped entity of transparent appearance shot out of his miniature tornado and charged its target down. The roar it let out was that of a hurricane or a storm, and Chou-Un was caught by surprise at the sudden attack. However, it did little to affect her progress in this fight, and spinning her sword in her grasp, slashed upwards at the wind release attack. A loud whoosh shot forth from her blade, and along with a shout of effort, the silver haired girl cut his technique in half. The great force of the technique that was supposed to hit her was at least averted, but she was still hit with a violent force of wind.

The wind tore at her already damaged clothes, ripping away her kimono top. Ignoring the obvious show of her fishnet top and nothing else, the girl gritted her teeth and leapt at Naruto. The boy growled and leapt to the right, avoiding a thrust from the girl's blade, which barely missed him as he took refuge behind another statue block. He ducked behind it, drawing a kunai with an explosive tag and stabbing it into the stone face. A second later, he was forced to jump away as Chou-un's blade suddenly cut clean through the rock, slicing it into four pieces at the speed of her attacks.

It was in that blink of an eye moment, a spark was lit, and the kunai bomb suddenly detonated right in front of Chou-Un, sending her flying backwards towards the palace staircase. Wincing at the burns from the explosion, the cuts received and the bruises, the girl took control of her flight path and skidded to a stop. Ignoring her ripped clothing, the silver haired warrior spun her sword again and charged through the smoking dust cloud still filled with embers and ash.

Naruto used this opportunity to retrieve his tanto, picking it up off the ground and turning to face his opponent's supposed position. She shot through the cloud, slashing out at him and forcing him to block her attack. His blade slid along hers and clattered, the blonde being forced back as Chou-Un grappled against him.

The girl smirked at him, and he grinned back, pumping wind chakra through his blade to increase its strength against her unbreakable blade. The two warriors then shoved each other away with guard breaks, and Naruto leapt back then to his left, circling the girl as she did the same, both still facing each other. Then after a moment of repositioning themselves they reengaged in another heated clash of flying blades and unorthodox attacks.

Just as Chou-un was moving in on the attack against her young opponent, who staggered back after being slashed across his right eye, knocking him off-balance and blinding him temporarily from the pain and blood, the girl suddenly jerked to a stop. Gasping, she looked down at the stone floor beneath her to see a pair of hands grabbing her leg. In an instant, the ground right in front of her cracked and exploded beneath her, a second Naruto jumping out of the earth, kunai in hand as it tried to stab her.

With her leg still being held down, the silver haired girl didn't have a great leverage in avoiding, and managing to avert her head slightly to avoid serious damage, ended up with a scratch across her cheek. Growling, she kneed the clone Naruto with her free leg, taking it out in a puff of white smoke. Then, in an unexpected attack, she was then tackled by a third and forth Naruto, one aimed for her torso, the other aimed for her sword in an attempt to disarm her.

Chou-Un was knocked to the floor but fortunately for her, not out. Quickly countering, she hooked at the Naruto pinning her at the waist with her free hand, knocking him into the other and shoving them both off of her. Instantly, the swordswoman rolled back onto her feet, leaping into the air high, just as another Naruto clone shot out of the ground with another kunai, lashing at her.

Upon getting airborne, the Naruto clones on the ground, suddenly surrounded her and took to the air, several jumping off of anther's back to gain altitude in their next attack. Chou-Un met them in mid-air combat, slashing at them as they came in with kunai to strike lethal blows. Though a couple attacks landed, they were non fatal flesh wounds, but the girl was still wounded nonetheless. However, as she was so focused on the clones coming up at her, she missed the one coming straight down at her from above, Chou-Un barely having enough time to cross her arms over her face and block the axe-kick the real Naruto sent down at her.

The two of them both fell from the sky, landing on top of each other hard upon hitting the floor. Yelping in pain, both of them rolled away from each other, Chou-Un still gripping her sword, and Naruto picking up a stray kunai from the ground.

Panting heavily from exhaustion and fatigue both damaged fighters staggered back to their feet. Just as they did, both of them reached their limits, falling to their knees and barely keeping hold of their weapons.

With his lack of chakra, Naruto suddenly found that his kunai was too heavy to hold on strength alone, and tossed it aside. Literally on his last leg, the blonde shinobi instead opted for a final attack, holding his right hand forward and concentrating as hard as he could, formed his easily recognizable signature move. Blue wind energy swirled into his palm, and within seconds, a tennis ball sized chakra sphere appeared. When he was done, it suddenly became slightly unstable, as his lack of energy prevented him from maintaining it for too long.

Chou-Un, winded and also on her last limbs, grabbed her sword in both hands, took aim and quickly threw herself at her opponent only a few feet away, vision blurry and body strained to breaking point. Naruto picked himself up too, and in turn, thrust himself at her. With simultaneous yells of effort, they thrust their attacks into one another.

"RASENGAN!"

Naruto struck Chou-Un full on in the stomach, and Chou-Un pierced him straight through his left shoulder, a spray of blood shooting out of the exit wound. Meanwhile, the blonde shinobi's signature mood dug and drilled itself briefly into its target, until…

The explosion of rippling air currents that followed came from the boy's unstable Rasengan, sending them both flying in opposite directions.

They skidded across the ground, tumbling and rolling to a stop in different positions, covered in dust, gravel and a thin cloud of debris. There, the two warriors laid for a moment as the effects of their attacks on each other settled, and the onlookers gaped in awe and disbelief. Probably the most intense battle of the day, those who could not keep up with the fight were left gaping like fish, wondering what had just happened.

Chou-Un recoiled, gripping her stomach and coughing up blood, attempting to push herself up, but inevitably falling back onto her stomach, groaning. Naruto meanwhile, struggled as he sat up, grabbing the sword's handle, whose handle was pressed right up against his skin. With a loud yell and a cry of agony, he pulled it out, blood splattering everywhere. He threw the sword away and shakily got to his feet, but fell to his knees instead, gripping the deep entry wound made by his opponent.

"Argh! Dammit… ergh…" Naruto choked out, looking up to where his opponent lay.

He saw the girl was lying on her back, gripping her exposed stomach that had a huge bruise mark in it, and obviously a couple of cracked ribs. Breathing raggedly, the girl coughed up a bit more blood before turning towards the boy, kneeling several meters away from her. Seeing him staring at her, the girl took in a deep breath and smiled at him.

"T-To be beaten… like this…" the girl moaned, eyes shimmering with unshed tears of delight. "I… I… feel… very… strange… for some… odd… reason," She looked up towards the sky, feeling a breeze whip at her hair and a bird fly overhead, singing clearly in her ears. "I'm glad… to have h-had… this fight. T-Thank you."

Naruto, through blinding pain, staggered towards the young girl, stopping right in front of her. As he stood over her, she smiled up at him. "You are strong… Naruto"

The boy smiled back, dropping to his knees in exhaustion.

"Same to you… Chou-Un…"

The next thing Naruto knew were blackness as his body hit the floor, and his name being called by the young girl he had returned to her kingdom, running towards him and dropping to her knees next to him.

"NARUTO-KUN! Naruto!"

* * *

_**Later that following week…**_

When Naruto awoke a day later, he found himself lying in a hospital bed, alongside two of his previous opponents, all of them wrapped in bandages and casts, same as him, and a patiently waiting and attentive Konoka. The red-headed princess was so relieved to see him regain consciousness, she forgot all about his injuries and glomped him, earning a cry of agony from the boy when she put pressure on his chest. Apparently, she was just really happy to see him alive and well, and he appreciated every last moment of the hug, knowing that he too was alive.

After the girl detached herself from him, the boy spotted his newly stitched and fixed clothes, as well as all his weapons and gear deposited on his bedside table. And, lying on a bed not to far from his was his summoned Seven-Tailed friend, Moka. The white fox was napping peacefully, one eye always checking up on him to make sure he was okay.

To Naruto, the sight of the hospital walls was a welcome change, and for once, the boy could rest at ease.

Eventually, by the end of the day, he was up and about, all his wounds healed thanks to the remnants of the Nine-Tailed Fox's power still coursing through his system. It made him grateful for actually having the Kyuubi sealed inside of him in the first place, but he didn't like being scolded by the Nine-Tailed entity, especially after meeting her in his unconscious state. She said he was extremely lucky, but also said he had gotten much stronger from his experience. This made Naruto smile.

As soon as he could walk about again, Naruto was all healed, and could finally tour about the village at his own leisure. During which, High Princess Hirano reassumed leadership of the Kingdom of the Eastern Winds, continuing with the populace's daily business and repairing all the damages Heinkel made to the place, ensuring that the economy and infrastructure was back to normal. The palace, of course, had to be repaired from the battle that took place between Heinkel's forces, and the hero who saved the Kingdom from a tyrant.

As soon as Naruto had recovered completely, a celebration was held in his honor, with the full attendance of the royal family, royal guard and the reinstated council of the Kingdom. The young shinobi was made a hero throughout this land, and a seat next to the High Princess should he ever return.

But then came the time of his departure, and as he stood at the newly repaired front gates of the palace, was seen off by the High Princess, Konoka and most of the population of the surrounding village. Wearing a newly repaired red trench coat, pants and headband, but this time not wearing the vest and just the bandoleer of scrolls and weapons around him, the young warrior prepared to set off. He smiled up at the Kingdom's leader, seeing her return his smile with one of her own, with her bowing to him in extra gratitude.

"Thank you very much, Naruto," the woman said, her voice filled with sincerity. Naruto nodded his head, seeing her straighten back up and smile back down at him. "For all you have done for us… for returning my daughter to me, and saving our Kingdom from a future oppressor, you have restored the very way of life back to my family, and to these people. I just wish there was more we could do to repay you for your kindness."

"Ahh… thanks anyway… but I think I'm good!" Naruto replied, rubbing the back of his head and grinning back to her. "That feast last night was all the thanks I needed to get me started for the journey today. Now… I just wish for you all the best for the future."

"Yes, of course. I promise you, Naruto Uzumaki, that I will make our Kingdom the most prosperous of all, for the benefit of the land and for the people. And to you too, I wish for you all the best on your adventures, knowing that it was through your actions and good heart that has inspired me to help my people the best I can!"

"Hehe… thanks! You're sure to do great!" Naruto then turned his attention from the beaming Hirano to her daughter, who was standing by her side or… more like hiding behind her timidly, admiring the young by from a distance. When his eyes landed on her, she ducked behind her mother a little more, face red. Regardless, Naruto smiled brightly at her and bowed towards the young girl. "And… Konoka… I'm sure you'll grow up to be a beautiful young woman one day, who will be a great leader just like your mother!"

Konoka audibly 'eeped' at his words, and peered from around her mother's dress shyly. The moment she saw Naruto wink at her, the girl impulsively ran out and rushed at him, wrapping her arms around him and kissing him full on, on the lips. She held it there for a few seconds, the crowd around them either gasping or 'awing' at the sight, while Hirano giggled as her daughter bid goodbye to her crush. Eventually, Konoka released Naruto's lips and ran back to her mother, leaving a very astounded, wide-eyed and blushing ninja.

Clearing his throat, Naruto smiled and looked back up towards the pair, spotting one of the former Jonin enemies standing beside the High Princess. Kinako, the blue haired, duel sword weilder, now dressed in an imperial guard garb, smiled at the boy and waved. The young shinobi, not at all surprised by the sight, smiled back at her and waved.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, pointing towards her. "Don't you try anything funny with the royal family, you hear! I don't want to have to come around one day and see you sitting in that throne!"

"Ah, it's okay. I'm through with that," Kinako said, smirking at the young boy. "My duties are now protecting her highness and grace, and training the royal guard and new recruits. Better to have stronger soldiers next time if any trouble arises…"

Naruto grinned. "Well… I hope you do well." As he turned back towards the High Princess, he barely missed the small blush appearing on the blue haired girl's cheeks, and she looked away.

"Well… I'm heading out now! See yah later!" Naruto called, waving over his shoulder as he turned on his heel and started down the road.

"Don't be a stranger now, Naruto!" Hirano exclaimed.

"Bye, Naruto-kun! Thanks for everything! Visit soon!" Konoka called out, also waving towards the boy as he walked on. The blonde haired shinobi waved back, the crowd also waving and cheering him as he disappeared down the road. Soon, the young shinobi was out of the Kingdom's village outskirts, and now crossing the hills, eventually coming to a point at the top of the hill where he could see the entire Kingdom and ocean coast.

For a full minute, he turned to look out over the ocean, admiring the new glow the Kingdom had, which really struck something real deep inside of him. With a smile, he then continued on.

"Please… wait!" a shout came from behind Naruto as he was about to leave.

Turning, Naruto got a bit of a surprise when he saw a fully healed Chou-Un run up the hill towards him, dressed in a new martial arts designed kimono top, katana in a newly made sheath and a scroll tied onto her back. Stopping in front of the ninja who had defeated her, the silver haired girl dropped to one knee and bowed to the boy, eyes closed.

"Naruto… I wish to join you on your journey, and learn the ways of living and fighting through your eyes," the girl said in pure sincere and formal fashion.

It took a while for the surprised boy to actually come to terms with what Chou-Un said to him, and so he just stood there for the next few seconds, his brain absorbing what she said very… very slowly.

"Wha?"

Chou-Un sweat dropped and looked up at him, her green eyes shimmering in the light.

"I said I wish to accompany you on your journey, Naruto-sama!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Hold on there for a second! This is… this is just so sudden. Are you saying you want to come along with me? For real?"

"Mm-hm. I wish to learn from you, your way of life, to experience your adventures, and to be close… uhh…" Chou-Un stumbled on her words and looked away, blushing brightly. "I uhh… that last one is irrelevant."

Raising an eyebrow, Naruto folded his arms and looked the girl over for a bit, taking in the girl's words, the way she said them, and by the expression on her face. He could clearly see the streak of red across her cheeks, and the way her eyes shifted away from him and to him every now and again. From what he could tell, she didn't pose any threat to him, and since he was back to full strength and fully rested, he knew he was much stronger then from when he fought her several days ago.

Seeing as that she wasn't back at the Kingdom, and that she was packed for travel, the blonde haired boy figured she wasn't intent on going anywhere else but with him. Figuring that she would be good company and support for him on his long term travel, as well as not wanting to force the girl into taking a different choice, Naruto smiled and nodded his head, letting out a sigh.

"Alright then… I guess you can tag along. I'd appreciate your company if you like to talk…"

"Really?" Chou-Un looked up at him brightly. Realizing she was sounding a bit overly excited, she looked away again with a blush and cleared her throat. "Uhh… that's… that's great. Thank you very much, Naruto-sama. I will not let you down."

Naruto smirked, and turning on his heel, began heading off once again.

"Come on… we got a lot of country to cover still." Chou-Un stood up and followed him, keeping in tune with his steps as they both proceeded for an unknown destination, still in the process of being figured out by the young blonde.

As they walked side by side Chou-Un with a bit of red still on her face continued to take glances at the young boy walking beside her. His great posture, his obviously great body, his handsome face and untamable, blonde hair, he was a picture of health and greatness. She smiled and looked ahead of them, watching the winding path lead them next the eastern coast of this world.

"_To be so strong… and so kind, this guy… makes me want to be with him…"_

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_

* * *

_**Author's Note: **__I've decided to try out an interesting device at the end of some of my chapters now. I want to try out a power level system similar to the ones I've been using in my stories to put into perspective how each character featured fairs against each other. It sure as hell beat having to explain how strong each character is at the points of the original plot line._

_Be aware though that these are based on chakra, ki and skill, and may be influenced by strength as well._

**Power levels:**

_Battle of Kingdom of the Eastern Winds_

**Naruto:**

Base: 150,000

Full Power: 260,000

**Kyuubi:**

Phantom Cloak Form: 300,000

_**Mysterious Five Jonin:**_

**Chou-Un:**

Base: 150,000

Full Power: 260,000

**Kinako:**

Full Power: 225,000

**Fuugo:**

Full Power: 220,000

**Saji:**

Full Power: 200,000

**Mao:**

Full Power: 180,000

**Von S. Heinkel (Boss):**

Base: 100,000

Full Power (using explosion technique): 280,000

_**Other:**_

**Jiraiya** (though not present)**:**

Base: 400,000

Full Power: Unknown


	7. Over the Horizon

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_Over the Horizon_

_**Three weeks later…**_

Naruto and Chou-Un stood at the end of a large peer, blinking and staring at all the ships docked in the harbor at the very edge of the peninsula of the continent, just north of the Land of Fire borders. This particular port caught their attention, as it had such a vast number of vessels at anchor here, and a very lively atmosphere. The fresh air of the ocean beckoned them here and also because Naruto had planned to get on one of these boats, and get away from this country.

As they walked down the bustling peer, looking up at each boat and each model, both of them considered the origins of each vessel and where each of them would be heading. For most of the big boats here, they were all of Asian design, paper sails, and timber wood and solid halls. A lot of these particularly large vessels were fishing trawlers, the crews of each ship selling off their catches to the port owners and what not, while any other miscellaneous ships, including passenger transports, frigates, and large military vessels deposited their items and materials to the port. Soldiers and marines from all the coastal lands, such as the Land of Fire and Land of Lightning Naruto had visited were marching around each of their vessels, performing drills and patrolling the walkways. Naruto ignored them as he and Chou-Un searched for a boat they could hire or perhaps buy onto.

"Where exactly do you plan on going when we manage to get onto a boat, Naruto-sama?" Chou-Un queried, admiring a particular craft she had never seen before.

Aside from the multitude of local merchant ships and military boats, Naruto and Chou-Un also set their eyes on some very unusual, other ships. These included ship-of-the-line design battleships, European origins, but Naruto had no idea what they were. There were only a couple of these, a foreign merchant ship with large booms called _Cyclops_ and a massive boat quite a lot of other people were looking at, a Beiyang Fleet Turret Ship, completely made of steel with huge cannons on it called the _Zhenyuan_. Though, as powerful and strange this ship looked, Naruto felt that it wasn't the type for them.

"I don't know. I just… feel like exploring some lands outside of the maps of this continent. You know… keep sailing east till we hit the next foreign country. I think it will be good for the two of us,' Naruto replied, smiling at the silver haired girl. She smiled back, and after letting Naruto get ahead of her down the peer, inwardly leapt with joy, which seemed to bubble up to the surface in the form of a giggle and a grin.

"_Eee… that means I get to be with Naruto-sama all alone some more and share a room!"_

Looking left and right at the unique ships lined up, Naruto suddenly came across a vessel that really caught his eye, and was apparently very strange in appearance. It was definitely foreign, hard wood design, oak or pinewood or some other, white paint railings, red and white stern sail and a dull, high brown main sail with a crows nest. Oddly enough about this vessel, it had the skull and bones flag, but with a straw hat on top, and what looked like to be a giant tree growing near the helm.

Chou-un also stopped to analyze the boat, both of them reading the name of the docked ship on the side. They both raised an eyebrow at it.

"_Going Mary_?" Naruto queried.

"That's a very strange name for a ship… yet… I guess it suits a colorful vessel like this," Chou-Un said, shrugging.

"But she's a real beauty," Naruto replied, smiling brightly.

"She sure is!" a third voice joined them, catching their attention. Turning to their right, they saw a very lanky man, wearing a straw hat, blue shorts, and a red vest and had a strange scar under his eye, carrying a stack of about five to six crates across the pier, walk towards them and set the boxes down in front of them.

The man stepped out from behind them and grinned at the young pair, tipping the straw hat he wore to them and turning to what the ten-year-old pair deduced was his boat. He leant up against the crates and sighed as he looked over his vessel.

"There's a very long story behind this ship… what with all the battle scars, adjustments and fixes we've made on her, that story gets really interesting. She's just as much a home, as she is a member of our crew," the skinny man exclaimed, glancing down at the two kids as they looked up at him. Taking the toothpick out of his mouth, the tall ship owner grinned down at them and nodded. "The name is Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm the Captain of the _Going Mary_. Now, what can I do for the young, lovely couple today, aye?"

That particular comment made Chou-Un hide her red face in embarrassment, while Naruto choked on the very idea. Clearing his throat, the young man smiled up at the captain and reached into his trench coat pocket, looking around for a particular item.

"We're looking for a ship to take us across the ocean to the lands to the Far East, and…" looking back up at the captain, Naruto pulled out a small brown bag from his pocket and fumbled around through its contents. "We want to make the voyage as interesting as possible. Your ship caught our eye, so right now we would like to inquire about the possibility of transport."

Luffy smiled and folded his arms over his chest. "That depends… how much are you willing to pay?"

Pulling out a handful of items from the small bag, Naruto held up a pure gold piece, fanning it out to reveal about six to ten more pieces behind it. Luffy crouched down and looked at the gold pieces, analyzing them for their authenticity.

"Hmm… they look real. And so shiny!" the captain exclaimed, taking one of them and biting down on it. Naruto raised an eyebrow as the man tested it, before smiling and handing it back to him.

"You can keep that one," Naruto said, leaning away.

"Well! They're definitely real. But… it's not exactly enough for first class," Luffy stated, smiling.

Chou-Un frowned, eye twitching as she looked the man up and down. _"Geez… what a crook. Naruto's paying over five-thousand ryos worth of gold for this trip, and this man isn't even happy with it yet…"_

Naruto smirked and pulled out another few items from the small bag. Holding it up, he flashed towards the young captain an assortment of jewels between his fingers, and a solid ten kilogram bar of gold, which felt like three grams to him. Luffy grinned and took the jewels, and the ten pieces of gold Naruto had held up to him before.

"That's definitely first class for a one-way trip to the lands to the east… and…" he picked up the gold bar, feeling its weight. "Private quarters are in order here. Welcome aboard!"

Naruto smirked, glancing at Chou-Un who quirked at his exceedingly high expense. "Don't worry about it… I've got a lot more put away."

The two of them followed Luffy up onto the boat, and stood to the side as they watched him and the crew load the supplies onto the ship. A little over an hour later, the ship was out of the harbor and out on the open ocean.

It took a while for Chou-Un to adjust to life on a boat, throwing up more then once on the first day, with Naruto there to comfort her as she leaned over the side of the ship's railings and ending up a pale, ghostly white in the end. It was obviously her first time on a large ship like the _Going Mary_, so it was a real shock to her body and sense of balance the first time she set foot on a long distance voyage such as this. So, from the first day of discomfort from throwing up, she spent the whole second day in her room, and the third day refilling her stomach once she got used to the boat's swaying and rocking.

Naruto had spent the past three days comforting Chou-Un in her worse for wear states, so it was a real relief to him when she was finally better, and stuffing her face at the dining table like he did.

These experiences on the ship and long days out on the open sea allowed the pair to get to know the crew of the _Going Mary_, particularly on the third day when they were out and about on the deck and down below, exploring outside of their two-person room.

There were seven members of the crew of the _Going Mary_, the group, including the ship, going by the name of the _Straw Hat Pirates_. They were an unusual bunch, but to Naruto they were pretty much ordinary, seeing as for most of his life he had been hanging around Jiraiya, as well as meeting Tsunade, Shizune, a Jinchuriki going by the name of Killer Bee, another going by the name of Fu, and another named by Yugito. Compared to them, this crew was a real joy to be around.

Naruto particularly got along with the captain, Luffy, due to their personality similarities, such as being able to eat vast quantities and share conversations for long periods of time on what they wanted to get out of life and what not. Luffy was great to hang out with, and what the young ninja found very peculiar was that he was made of rubber. Aside from him, Naruto also got along really well with Nami, Chopper, Usopp and Sanji. Of course he got along with the whole crew, he really went around getting to know each of them when they were not busy, and tried to contribute as much of himself to the crew as possible, such as getting used to the atmosphere of the ship and getting to know how the ship was worked and run.

When Naruto wasn't bothering the crew, asking them questions, engaging in direct conversation or sleeping on the railing, he challenged Luffy, Nami and Zoro to battle… or… sparring on the deck under a live audience. Since they didn't want to destroy the ship, Naruto just went on to learning their styles instead.

Chou-Un also got some practice in with Zoro as well. Actually, it wasn't much of a training exercise or practice at all; it was more like a death threat or an actual challenge the way the two approached each other. But in the end, it turned out to be a light sparring session anyway. On top of fancy sword play and words exchanged between the two, Chou-Un and Zoro actually got along really well. In fact, the only people that Chou-Un really talked a lot with on the boat were Naruto, Zoro, Robin and Nami. She found their wisdom very intriguing.

What was most enjoyable on this trip however, was not just the talking, the play-fighting or exploring the ship; it was the food. Saji made the most delicious meals Naruto or Chou-Un had ever tasted, and after eating their first meal from the cook, they then stood beside him breakfast in and dinner out, watching him cook, wanting to master this next element of living, cooking! Learning from this smartly dressed chef, they would most certainly improve their standard of living.

Eventually, after a couple of weeks out on the open sea, the Going Mary soon sighted land, and docking at the nearest foreign port of this continent, Naruto and Chou-Un disembarked. Bidding farewell to the Straw Hat Pirates, the young pair made good their good-byes and the promise to one day see the gang again. When they got to the highest most point of the new land they had arrived on, they saw the ship off, waving to Luffy and his crew as they vanished over the horizon.

Wishing the fondly and good luck, Naruto and Chou-Un then proceeded into the countryside of this new land.

* * *

_**Three days later…**_

"Oooohhh… we are so freakin' lost," Naruto groaned as he looked around him, once again stuck at a crossroads. Chou-Un stood beside him, also looking around and wondering in pleasant terms 'where the hell they are'. Scratching their heads, they looked down three of the roads, ignoring the one they had just come from.

The geography around them consisted of hillsides, evergreen mountains in the distance, and a series of small pockets of farming communities and villages as far as they could tell. Their main goal at this point was to find a large civilization, perhaps a Kingdom or a capital village of some kind. They knew very little about this country, so they had to visit its capital in order to find out as much as they could about it

Walking forward, Naruto took a look up at the sign of the crossroads, responsible for directing any weary travelers in the right direction. He placed his hands on his hips, reading the sign while Chou-Un looked down the road to their right, which seemed to stretch over into more distant farmlands and hillsides beyond.

"_Hmm… Welcome to Amestris…" _Naruto read, placing his thumb and forefinger over his chin and rubbing it. _"Never heard of it. I guess it must be one of the countries or states of this continent…"_

"So… which way do we go, Naruto-kun?" Chou-Un asked, glancing at the blonde. The young shinobi looked at her, raising an eyebrow at the way she addressed him. It wasn't until a few seconds later did the girl, realizing her blunder, slapped her hands over her mouth, joined by a widening of eyes, a little bit too late. However, aiming to correct herself, she shook her head and looked away, blushing. "I mean… Naruto-sama…"

"It seems we are in a country called Amestris. From the looks of it, we have a choice to either go to the South, North or Central…"

"Where do we plan on going then?"

Rubbing the back of his head, Naruto reconsidered the signs, and which way each of them pointed. Letting out a sigh, he turned towards the girl and smiled.

"I say we head to Central. It seems like the most logical choice…"

Chou-Un nodded, and started heading straight up, Naruto following. Soon, the two of them were walking side by side through the green countryside, passing by farmers working in the fields, deer on the meadows, and small cottages every once in a while. It was an entirely new land to Naruto, with none of the familiar shrines, red archways, wooden bridges or buildings of his world's design, or the usual robes or clothing worn by the people they passed by or met on the road. This experience, though strange, made Naruto smile brightly, which Chou-Un caught on to.

Smiling herself, she looked around as they walked under the mid-day sun.

"It sure is beautiful out here…"

"Yeah… it really is…"

* * *

_**After a few hours of traveling…**_

"Damn… this country is bigger than I thought," Naruto mumbled to himself as he launched himself into a flurry of wushu combos he had learned from his time traveling with Jiraiya across the Five Great Shinobi Nations. Sweating profusely, while wearing only his black trousers and combat boots, the young blonde shadow sparred with thin air, practicing and exercising his muscles. Wearing a bunch of heavy weights did that, and whenever he launched a punch, a kick, a knee or whatever, there was a loud whooshing sound that could be heard for hundreds of meters in every direction.

The lush green grass at the banks of the lake Naruto and Chou-Un had stopped beside after three or four hours of walking, provided an excellent spot for them to rest, and catch up n their favorite past times. With his gear deposited next to his silver-haired colleague, the spiky haired shinobi physically trained his body through a variety of taijutsu and martial art forms Jiraiya had practiced with him, and from what he had learned from his travels and the brief time he spent with the Straw Hat gang.

The boy seemed to glide his sparring over the grass, moving with the currents of wind, feeling the environment around him. His senses had to be focused in order for him to reach the highest potential possible. Sweat cascaded down his body and sprayed off with each punch and kick.

Meanwhile, Chou-Un sat beside their gear, her katana laid across her as she polished and filled it down with a special rock. Loud swipes from the rock against the side of the blade as it was sharpened could be heard within Naruto's furious training regime. Every now and again the young girl would stop and watch him with great intent, a dreamy gaze on her face and a smile on her lips.

"If we are so far away from the Center of Amestris, then I think we're going to have to find ourselves a more suitable mode of transport," Naruto finally said.

Ceasing his physical exercises for the moment, the young blonde then moved on to practicing his jutsu. While standing on the water near the deeper parts of the lake, he produced a small number of clones to sit in a circle behind him and concentrate on harnessing his wind chakra in different forms, such as; cloaked over weapons, fists, feet, within his palms, around his whole body, and so that the wind chakra visibly rotated around him. While they did that, Naruto went on to unleashing his signature techniques, while thinking up varieties in which to use them.

"Well… how do you suppose we get to Central faster then?" Chou-Un asked, getting to her feet. Drawing her sword, she took a stance, and began training alongside her companion, wanting to get a little physical exercise out of this. She also had weights strapped to her wrists and ankles. "I mean… we passed a farm we could have visited and asked for information from ages ago, and there are no horses, boats or any other forms of transport anywhere in our area as far as I can see."

The two of them thought about it, training in their own way as they attempted to figure out a way to get to the capital of this country faster.

"Wind Release: Giant Tornado Rasengan!" Naruto shouted, producing a blue orb out of the palm of his hand and throwing it straight up towards the sky. What resulted, the blue streams of chakra warping in the very baseball sized sphere itself, shot straight up in the form of a piercing blue light! The moment the thin strip of blue disappeared into the sky above, black and grey clouds instantaneously formed, and began to warp and swirl into tiny epicenter, just like a hurricane. Then, in a blink of an eye, the two mile wide lake in front of Naruto suddenly erupted in a vortex like explosion of unbelievable force. Engulfed in water, wind and debris, it shot upwards, taking shape and size of a large tornado. Utilizing the wind chakra from his palms, Naruto directed it through the air and controlled the water-spout, that reach right up to the clouds formed overhead, altering its shape, moving it slowly, and maintaining it as best as he could.

Gritting his teeth, with his right hand, Naruto threw it down, the tornado shooting straight for the ground, and with the whip-crack of an explosion, hurled the water he had picked up in every direction, showering the shores, Naruto, his clones, and Chou-Un behind him. The girl had watched the entire show unfold in front of her in amazement, but when it started to shower, she used that as a training exercise. Taking a stance, she slashed her blade in front and around her. With great speed, ferocity and precision, she cut down every single droplet that fell towards her, giving the impression she was surrounded by a shield, preventing the rain of water from hitting her. When the drizzle ended, she stood, and with a exhale of air, twirled her sword around and sheathed it.

Chou-Un looked up towards the blonde still standing on the lake, his clones still intact and in full concentration.

"We have no idea how much further we have to go, so I suggest we attempt to hitchhike on the next vehicle that heads down that road!"

Turning to face the girl about two hundred meters behind him, Naruto smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Let's… right after another hour of recreational training… okay?"

Chou-Un nodded. "Alright…"

And that was the plan, even though it lacked originality.

After which this was said, Naruto practiced another long hour of throwing out all the techniques he knew, and exercising restraints and control in order to form new techniques of his own, and Chou-Un went into more strenuous training. Improving her swordsmanship skills, close-quarter fighting and ki-manipulative skills meant she had to dish out a lot of effort, just like Naruto, in their 'discreet' training session. Later on, once the hour had passed, the two of them stopped to catch their breath, although Naruto kept his clones in place over the water's surface to continue holding control over their wind chakra manipulation practice. During which time, the traveling duo pulled out some of the supplies they were carrying with them, cooked some fish over a fire and had some green tea.

Taking up spots around the small fire, the two of them then simply talked with one another, appreciating the beautiful surroundings and sights to see around them. They asked each other questions, little by little, getting to know the person they were traveling with a little bit better each day.

Taking a bite out of his fish, Naruto smiled up at Chou-Un, chewing and swallowing.

"So… I take it as a wondering Ronin with the skills you possess, that you must have had some serious training earlier in your life, Chou-Un." The boy eyed the smiling Chou-Un as she sipped her tea quietly, eyes closed and katana laid tentatively at her side. She had had her eyes closed for a lot of the time Naruto had been traveling with her, which seemed to give the green-eyed girl a more mysterious aura about her. "Heck, even if I didn't have to fight those other rogue warriors back at the palace, I'm certain I still would have had a difficult time fighting you."

"It doesn't matter how strong or weak a person is in areas of fighting, a lot of warriors' abilities depends on who they are pitted against in combat… in our cases anyway," Chou-Un said, glancing at the boy, eyes still cut. "Ninja are different from Ronin. Of course, as a samurai, I was trained to fight as a ninja too… but as a person trained in dojo arts, as opposed to your unorthodox style, essentially boils down to the fact that it is difficult for one of us to kill the other. But… as it turns out… you are much stronger then I am…"

Naruto shrugged and looked back down at his fish. "Maybe so… but you have an unusual amount of chakra in you. Heck… I don't think it's even chakra at all."

"You mean the spiritual and physical energy that you shinobi use?" Chou-Un queried. "Well… the truth is I don't use chakra at all. I use a different source of energy called ki, which is much different from the embodiment of energy ninja use in combat. Ki energy is life energy, taken from the center of our bodies, and in essence is the physical inner strength one can muster. When controlling it, a person can bring out their full-potential, enhancing their strengths and mobility, and increasing their battle prowess. Training in using ki is a lot like training to enhance your chakra capacity, only ki training is a lot more taxing on the body."

"That explains a lot," Naruto said. "You're unusually coordinated with the amount of speed you produce. Heck, you're even faster then me when I'm using chakra to boost up my speed. So where did you learn all these skills from, and who trained you?"

Chou-Un inhaled a little, and set her cup down. Looking down at her sword, she laid a hand on it and ran it over her sheath tenderly.

"My master was a man named Musashi Miyamoto," Chou-Un stated, causing Naruto to look up at her in surprise, having heard that name before. "He taught me everything I needed to know to survive out here. I learned that the sword was the embodiment of a samurai's honor and soul, and that it was an extension of my own body. He also told me that we must think before we take action and that honor can only be gained from the right course of action. That is why I have never drawn my blade to slay a person, only in self-defense."

Naruto chuckled and picked up his tea, watching the leaves at the bottom dance around as the surface rippled with motion.

"Your master is a legend… a very wise man indeed," the blonde said, taking a sip. "I remember my master Jiraiya talking to me about him once, when we stopped in Grass Country. Ero-Sennin once met him on his travels, and argued with the samurai about him stealing his dango. Heh… but he only ever told me about how Musashi was a legend, a wise man with incredible strength and skills, and not much about his encounter with him. In fact, Ero-Sennin taught me a lot from the teachings of the legends from the past; my father the Fourth Hokage, Masamune, Hanzo Hitori, and more. From these teachings, he taught me in believing in one's self, never giving up, and to follow my own path as a ninja. He said that making the right choice, what I felt was right, would lead to a better future, and that we should not follow a path shaped by another person's ideals for selfish gain. It is up to the next generation to create a better future for the world, and to settle our confrontations without the need to draw blood."

Chou-Un smiled, relishing in the words Naruto had passed on to her, with Naruto in kind, taking to heart her words of wisdom. Chuckling, the blonde twirled the stick that had the remains of his fish on it and point it at her, grinning.

"Some time in our travels, you're going to have to teach me a little bit of those ki manipulative skills of yours," Naruto said. The girl nodded in agreement.

"And you're going to have to show me some of those wushu martial arts you know…"

Sharing a laugh, the two of them then went on eating, sitting in silence, and carefully taking into consideration everything they had learnt from each other. Of course, after more talking, the two of them then went on to fighting over who got the last fish, and ended up splitting it between them.

By night time, Naruto and Chou-Un gathered up their gear, and making sure they didn't leave anything behind, then headed back up to the road, and continued on under the moon and stars.

After another hour of walking, the two of them came across a set of train tracks opposite the path they were following. The moment they came across is, they waited a bit to see if a train would come by, and sure enough, one did. A steam engine pulling along passenger carriages and several merchant carts. Running alongside it, they hitched a ride on one of the merchant carts with hay in it. The slightly bumpy ride was made comfortable by the hay itself, and depositing their gear around them, settled down in the hay to get some much needed sleep.

Through the slightly open door, they saw the full moon glowing brightly in the sky above, among the beautiful, shiny jewels of the stars. Naruto lay with his eyes open for most of the ride, while Chou-Un lay sound asleep beside him.

He smiled as he watched the valleys outside of their cart go by, as the train took them across the country sides and evergreen forests.

"_All this traveling… and learning new things everywhere I go… makes me think of what Pervy Sage went through on his travels. I can even bet he's never been to this land before…"_

* * *

_**The next morning…**_

_**At Central Station…**_

Feeling the train come to a stop, Naruto and Chou-Un quickly got off of the carriage they were riding on, and on to the platform of their station. Ensuring they had everything on hand, the pair then went on to explore this new and strange world.

It was a very interesting place, concrete walls, well-tiled floors, an arched glass ceiling, the window panes and artwork framed into them letting in the sunlight in an amazing way, and a lot of people dressed in very strange clothing walking around. The pair had never really seen clothing like the ones these people were wearing, what with coming from a different culture and all. That, and what they themselves were dressed in, didn't really help conceal the fact that they were from a foreign land, so when they started walking around the platform, they drew a lot of unwarranted attention.

Ignoring the scrutiny the civilians and other travelers were giving them, Naruto and Chou-Un proceeded towards the exit. The silver haired girl kept one hand on her sword at all times, weary f any pilfering, as well as being prepared to defend herself when necessary. The blonde however, knowing that he didn't have anything really of value that was hanging loosely out, kept his hands in his pockets and his face concealed as best as he could under his wide-brimmed straw hat, looking through the spaces in it from person to person.

Senses alert, the pair moved around small crowds, and various stands and stores around the station, stopping for a moment so that Naruto could buy a paper from a small boy running around with a bag on him. It only took a gold piece from the Naruto's pocket to have the kid skip away with a smile on his face.

On the way out through the large archway exit of Central Station, the blonde shinobi accidentally bumped into a large, tanned skin man with white hair, wearing a yellow jacket, black trousers, and sunglasses, and with a visible 'X' shaped scar across his face, walking in the opposite direction. He was accompanied by a small girl, slightly younger then Naruto, with black hair tied into two pig-tails, wearing a light pink martial arts clothes (similar to outfits Naruto had seen back in the Land of Fire), and had a little panda perched on her shoulder, who was also joined by a middle-aged man walking beside them, wearing a cloak concealing a slightly mangled, gruff face and unkempt hair.

"Oh… I beg your pardon," the large man said to Naruto, glaring down at the boy as the three of them walked passed.

"Sorry… my fault," the young shinobi replied, turning heel and continuing on walking, setting aside the little run in.

Opening the paper, Naruto went on reading and walking, with Chou-Un looking around at the open streets they had just walked in to. It was a really extraordinary place, tall buildings with fantastic brick work and roofing, high rises that stretched upwards for more then fifteen or twenty stories. The streets were paved well, lampposts down every street, people walking the pavements, and strange, four-wheeled vehicles driving around. Chou-Un had never seen cars or motor vehicles before, so the sight of them really intrigued her. She even went as far as breaking away from Naruto for a bit to admire a black, Rolls Royce taxi parked at the front of the station. She marveled at its features, and the insides of the vehicle, while the taxi driver confronted her in question.

"Excuse me miss, can I help you?" he asked. "Do you need to go somewhere?"

Chou-Un, slightly surprised, looked up and smiled. "Oh! No. Sorry! I was just… looking at this strange transport of yours."

The man raised an eyebrow at her. "A foreigner, huh?"

"Yes… pardon my rudeness," she replied, turning heel and running back to Naruto, who was still reading the paper for details, as well as a geographic description of where they were.

"Man… this country really is strange. Here they read their books and papers backwards!" Naruto mumbled to himself, turning the paper over from the weather to local news. Chou-Un looked over his shoulder down at the paper as well, curious as to what the boy was looking for. "What's more, there seems to be a lot going on around here. A Central Library has been blown up, an old laboratory… a foreign Prince from Xing breaking out of jail… and these guys called…_Alchemists_? This place is one heck of a whack-job!"

"You can find interesting stuff over the horizon," Chou-Un said with a smile. Folding the newspaper, Naruto also smiled and glanced over his shoulder at her.

"Come on; let's find a place where we can stay for a bit…"

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_

* * *

**__****_Author's Note:_**

I had thought about it, and decided to go along with an even wider journey for Naruto, where he encounters more then just characters in the fire nation, but way outside of it, so much so that a lot of the universes cross. I originally planned introducing characters from other anime and manga by having their worlds and countris of origin cross, and i think it's working out pretty well so far. Thanks for reading.


	8. The Elric Brothers

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_The Elric Brothers_

_**Later that day…**_

Naruto and Chou-Un left the apartment they had hired out and took to the streets, the blonde shinobi leaving his scrolls in the room along with whatever gear his comrade was carrying with her. Together they decided to explore the city streets, walking down various market boulevards, entering several shopping malls, and sight seeing some interesting looking landmarks. All in all, it was a very strange and wonderful experience for them.

They visited the Central Command building, where the leader of the country was supposedly living. They also went to get some lunch for themselves, as well as dinner for tonight. Unfortunately, the two had a little bit of trouble adjusting to using the fork and knife concept and proper manner of this society, eating spaghetti and meat balls, as well as something the people of this country called lasagna, food similar to their fried noodles. They also visited the central park, as well as key buildings like the military headquarters, the library and the branch that was being reconstructed, and a couple of local bars. The city had a lot to offer them, and at the same time the pair was wondering if any of the news they'd been hearing about was going to happen to them today.

Unfortunately, this was to be a strange twist of fate. While the pair were enjoying a nice stroll through central park as well as the ice-cream they had bought, they were suddenly interrupted by an unexpected person.

"Hello!"

Naruto and Chou-Un glanced to heir right, where they saw a young man around his age, about fifteen or so, perched on a nearby lamppost. He wore a yellow jacket and white pants with sandals, and was armed with a Dao blade. Accompanying him was what appeared to be a ninja, dressed in black and grey robes and wearing what Naruto thought for a second was an ANBU mask. He was crouched at the base of the lamp post on top of a phone booth, a kunai in hand and eyes glaring at them through the holes in the mask. The whisker-marked boy blinked in surprise, while Chou-Un, who had her eyes closed at that moment, looked on with curiosity.

"_Why would Konoha go through the trouble… wait a second," _Naruto raised an eyebrow at the young man, who was smiling kindly down at him. "Hello…"

The man grinned down at him. "We sensed an unusual aura about you, strangers!"

"You two have very interesting energy," the other said, and Naruto was surprised to hear that he was in fact a young girl. He had no idea, since the mask did make her look like a guy. "The girl beside you is surprisingly powerful, while you…"

"You seem to have two energies about you; a strong aura surrounding your body, and another… darker one deep inside of you," the man continued, propping his sword on his shoulder and tilting his head at the pair. "So… the question is… are you two enemies… or friends?"

"Huh?" Chou-Un queried.

"Whoa… hold on a moment," Naruto said. "What's this all of a sudden? First you two, completely random strangers, unexpectedly appear and start talking about auras, and now you're asking us whether we're enemies or friends? What is this? Who are you guys?"

"Oh! My apologies! I am Ling Yao; I am the 12th Prince of the Eastern Nation of Xing!" the man exclaimed, holding a hand up in a supposed greeting. "You two don't look like you're from around here either! Who are you, if I may ask?"

Naruto and Chou-Un looked at each other briefly, before looking back up at the strange man.

"Uhh… we're just travelers," Chou-Un replied. "We came from across the sea, from the Land of Fire."

"We just came to this city to see the sights is all," Naruto stated.

"Oh! I see," Ling Yao exclaimed, twirling his sword around and grinning. "So in other words, you're _demons_ from the Land of Fire that have come to spread your evil ways and pollute these lands!"

Naruto and Chou-Un were taken aback. "**Eh… what**?" they both said at the same time.

"Judging from that aura inside of you, you are the higher ranking demon. I'm sorry, but I'm afraid you're going to have to be vanquished…" the Prince continued. In a blink of an eye, the young warrior suddenly sprang from the lamppost and charged straight at the pair, specifically aiming for Naruto.

The boy freaked out and dropped his ice-cream, as did Chou-Un.

"WAIT! HOLD ON! WHAT?"

Ling slashed out at the boy, who pushed Chou-Un out of the way and at the last second, back-flipped out of the way. The young warrior, upon landing, gave pursuit, while his female bodyguard targeted Chou-Un, acting on instinct and following her master's lead in attack. Naruto growled and drew a pair of kunai, blocking a flurry of attacks from the older warrior as they were driven off of the footpath and down a small hillside, heading towards the lake.

"Argh! Would you knock it off already?" Naruto growled, leaping from side to side avoiding the swings from the young Prince, who was trying with great effort to attack the ten-year-old. Naruto brought his kunai around, slashing out repeatedly at him, only for Ling to swing around just as he had done, avoiding and blocking his strikes repeatedly.

Leaping back to put some distance between him and his opponent, Naruto took a defensive stance and prepared for another attack. At the same time, Chou-Un had engaged combat with Lan Fan. Throwing her ice-cream at the other woman warrior, who blocked it using her kunai, the silver-haired girl leapt back and took up her katana, still sheathed in its scabbard. When the masked warrior charged at her, the ten-year-old Ronin did not draw her katana, but instead began blocking the woman's kunai with her sheathed sword, avoiding her attacks and leaping around her strike range.

Back-flipping, Chou-Un took a firm stance, and watched as the masked girl reached into her belt, then toss a barrage of kunai her direction. With keen reflexes, Chou-Un effortlessly batted them aside, before charging at the young woman and kicking at her. Lan Fan leapt over her kick, dropped down and kicked at her foot, tripping the silver-haired girl, who landed on her arm, and using her momentum, spun her legs around and also knocked Lan Fan off her feet. Hitting the ground, the masked warrior drew another kunai and brought it down, aimed for the woman's chest.

Swinging her sheathed katana around, the young Ronin blocked the lethal strike at the forearms, holding it in place before pushing it off. The bodyguard ninja used this to leap off the ground, spin through the air, and then land perfectly in a defensive stance. Chou-Un leapt back to her feet as well, drawing her sword and sheathing her scabbard into her belt. Spinning her weapon around, she prepared to move on the attack against the older girl.

Naruto clashed blades with Ling, grappling with him for a moment before they both forced the other off of them. Leaping back, Naruto tossed his kunai at the young male, who blocked it with a simple swing of his sword and grinned at the boy.

"You've got some talent, young man," Ling exclaimed, despite the fact his opponent was very strong.

Naruto grinned. "You don't know the half of it!" Slapping his hands together, the boy formed a few hand signs, before ending with his hands held together in a bird seal. Ling, having never seen such a display before, prepared for the worst. "If you're so intent on killing me, let's see what you can do! I've been waiting for someone who can last longer then a few seconds against me!"

The water of the lake nearby suddenly rippled, and with a sudden explosion of force, an eruption of water shot forth high into the air in the form of a mass of water, moving, changing shape and splashing about. Ling gasped and backed away in shock, whereas Lan Fan and Chou-Un paused in their fight and turned to watch, both of them holding equal surprise on their faces. Naruto grinned as his chakra manipulated the mass of water, his opponent backing away.

"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"

The fountain of water morphed into the shape of a dragon, and with a loud roar, charged Ling down. The foreign Prince gritted his teeth and leapt out of the way in an attempt to avoid the massive beast, but was instead smacked full on by the blast of water, and sent flying in land. The water pushed and propelled him crashing through several trees, before he landed, rolling violently across a small clearing in the central park to a stop against a brick wall. With a yell of pain, he sat up, clutching his arm.

"Damn… it… he got me."

"Young Master!" Lan Fan shouted, breaking away from the fight and rushing to his aid. Chou-Un, seeing her attention shift, did not give chase, but instead straightened up and sheathed her sword away. With a sigh, she relaxed and went over to Naruto, who was also standing up straighter and ending his battle with his older opponent.

"Maybe… you got a little carried away," Chou-Un said, glancing at her traveling companion.

"Nah… he'll be fine," Naruto replied, rubbing the back of his head and turning to take his leave. "In all honesty… he's a lot tougher then I expected…"

"How about this then!" a new third voice entered the scene, and Naruto and Chou-Un looked up in surprise. Suddenly, the ground exploded in front of them, and out from it shot a massive stone hand making a grab for them. Shocked, the two wanderers leapt out of the way, splitting up in their attempt to avoid the attack.

While Naruto flew off to his left and Chou-Un right, the massive hand ended up hitting the shallows of the lake behind them, stopping. But when they thought that was over, there was a sudden current of blue sparks of electricity that crackled up around the form of the giant earth arm, and in a blink of an eye, drill-bits formed from the structure, and shot out in the two warriors' directions. Eyes widening in shock, in the one second time interval Naruto had, he formed a series of hand seals and clapped them together, the water of the lake beside him rushing out and shooting up around him in a block shape.

"Water Release: Water Encampment Wall Technique!" Naruto shouted, the water from the lake forming a gushing, defensive perimeter around him.

The massive stone spikes struck the water shield instead of him, and were filed to pieces, while at the same time Chou-Un blocked the barrage of spikes flying at her, cutting them to pieces just as her comrade had done. All of this occurred while they were still in mid-flight within a span of a few seconds. By the time it was over, Naruto and Chou-Un skidded to a stop, each of them taking their preferred weapons, and holding them up defensively to the new comers, coming to aid the fallen Ling and Lan Fan.

The moment them looked back up towards the footpath they were driven off from towards the lake side, they saw not only the two that had attacked them back on their feet and ready to fight again, but two new guys. One of them was a really big guy dressed in silver battle armor, armor that neither Naruto nor Chou-Un had ever seen before. Assuming that it was the armor used by this culture as a primary battle wear, the person looked like a formidable foe. The second of them was a rather short young man around Naruto's age, but certainly a little bit taller, with blonde hair in a ponytail, wearing black trousers and top with white lacing, leather boots and a red trench coat. He also looked quite tough, just like Ling and his female bodyguard.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, kunai flashing in the sunlight.

"Who the heck are you guys? Why are you attacking us all of a sudden?" Naruto asked.

"Listen, you are making a really big mistake," Chou-Un called out.

"Yeah right!" the short one of the four exclaimed, pointing a finger down at Naruto accusingly. "You're the ones that are making the mistake causing trouble around here! You'll have a lot of time to think about it when you're caught!"

The blonde shinobi tilted his head at the older boy poking threats at him. _"This guy seems like kind of a jerk…"_

Slapping his hands together, the shortest of the four suddenly slammed them down onto the ground, the earth at Naruto's feet crackling with electricity before suddenly beginning to shake. The spiky haired shinobi caught onto movement in the ground and leapt out of the way just as another hand came up and made a grab for him from right under his feet. Leaping out of the way and landing crouched, Naruto tossed the two kunai he held in his hands at the small attacker, only to have them impale a wall that unexpectedly shot up in front of the boy.

Naruto flung his hands behind him, several shuriken appearing between his fingers. The boy gritted his teeth. "Damn! What kind of jutsu is this?" Without a second thought, Naruto tossed the shuriken at his other previous opponents, whom blocked them all by batting them to the side before making their attack on Naruto. They charged him, with blurring speed that the boy expected from the two.

Trying to focus on the three were difficult, as Naruto was a little concerned about the techniques the short one in red was using, and had to avoid these earth things suddenly jotting out of the ground. Bringing around his tanto, the whisker boy also charged up at the hill, straight at Ling and Lan Fan. They attacked him first, with him defending as he slipped and shuffled around them, blocking and avoiding their attacks with rapid succession. He swung around them numerous times as they lashed out at him, trying to stay n their blind sides to avoid getting hit, or engage them nonetheless.

Chou-Un meanwhile had to stay on the move as well as another attack came her way. She leapt into the air as a number of earth spikes shot out of the ground, when she did; she aimed for the one behind the earth wall that was performing the techniques. The silver haired girl descended towards her target, but was suddenly blocked off by the appearance of the armor clad warrior, who sent a punch straight up at him. She blocked it with her blade, a shockwave coming off of them from the impact, before she was forced back by the giant warrior. Flipping through the air, she landed in a defensive stance, bringing her sword back before charging at the large man.

She was a blur to him, but he was able to follow her despite this, and block her blade as it came round at his torso. Kneeling down, he forced her off again, slapped his hands together and placed them on the ground. A crackle of electricity, and a fist shot out of the ground at Chou-Un. The young girl gasped and leapt out of the way, the fist pursuing her. Quickly, she slashed out at it, slicing the fist off, and causing the rest of it to crumble.

Naruto continued avoiding and blocking Ling and Lan Fan's attacks, not wanting to attack them as of yet. Instead, he warded them ff, managing to back flip away. When he did, he tossed five kunai their way, only for them to block them and charge at him again. Putting distance between him and his opponents, Naruto leapt up into the tree and took cover in the shadows. Ling and Lan Fan pursued, sensing him out. The tree rustled and shook, with clangs of metal ringing out as the fight continued out of sight. Eventually, Naruto was thrown out, the boy hitting the ground hard and rolling down a small hill, before stopping in a crouched stance. He grinned up at the tree and slapped his hands together in a hand sign.

"Katsu!" he exclaimed, at the same time a massive explosion rocked the garden as the tree roared up in flames. Emerging from the smoke and fire, the two warriors pursued, scolded by the flames with their clothing slightly scathed, but still in fighting form.

The boy smirked and ran forward, ducking right underneath them as he changed targets. The short one that had been casting those strange jutsu charged at him as well, hands slapped together. Parting them, he ran them over his right arm, the material dissipating as well as his white glove, revealing a metal hand and arm underneath. Running it down the forearm, a blade appeared, alerting Naruto to a new danger. The young shinobi leapt over the boy when he struck out and landed behind him, only for the older boy to reengage him with lightning speed, his bladed arm lashing out at him repeatedly, Naruto blocking many of his strikes with his tanto.

They attacked each other with excellent speed and ferocity, while in the background Chou-Un continued to fight the man in the metal armor, both of them on par with each other despite the silver haired girl's superior speed.

Grappling with the other blonde boy, Naruto gritted his teeth and tried to force him back, only to realize his opponent had one solid foot in the ground, giving him a good position in this lock between blades.

"_These people are dangerous! I don't think I can fight all three of them at once for too long!"_ the boy thought, Ling and Lan Fan suddenly appearing behind him. Gasping in surprise, Naruto ended his grapple by pushing off the ground and rolling over his opponent, causing him to trip forward. Breaking off, the young shinobi leapt through the air and formed his familiar crossed-fingers hand sign and smirked.

"Mass Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he shouted, bursts of smoke shooting up around him, clearing soon enough to reveal a horde of thirty or so copies. Landing amidst his horde of clones, which each drew a kunai to use, they prepared to attack. The real Naruto smiled watching as his opponents gawked at this strange, scary and unbelievable occurrence. _"Perhaps this is best if I play it as a numbers game…"_

Just then, in a blink of an eye and a flicker of slashes, Ling and Lan Fan suddenly appeared in front of the real Naruto, several clones suddenly going down in puffs of smoke. Naruto raised an eyebrow and blocked with a pair of kunai as the two warriors both came in and struck at the same time, the ten-year-old holding his ground as they grappled with him.

"_Odd… these two can not only fight without needing to see me, they can also pinpoint my chakra accurately enough to know when my next attack is coming. No wonder they're so tough to fight." _Smirking, Naruto forced them off of him and formed another hand sign, and he vanished in a swirl of leaves, leaving the pair amidst the clones that remained.

The groups of Naruto copies rushed in and started attacking them, Ling and Lan Fan moving onto defensive and counter-offensive as they were forced to defend themselves against one clone after another. Grabbing one, the Prince flung the copy into another, before slicing out at another one and taking him out, Lan Fan back-flipping over a slash attack from behind and dropping back down, cutting that clone down before reengaging with another furious assault. Then, just as they were in the midst of battling the multiple blonde warriors, a spark shot up within the horde, and they all went up in a series of explosions. The real Naruto knelt outside of the group, a smile on his face as his hands relinquished themselves from their hand sign.

"_The old exploding shadow clone, leave it to mom to come up with the best improvisation of her technique ever…"_

As the cloud of smoke rose into the air, Ling and Lan Fan staggered out, clutching their heads and a bit more scorched from the simultaneous attacks. They knelt down, coughing from the smoke and dust they inhaled. Naruto on the other hand had another thing to worry about, leaping into the air when suddenly, to slabs of earth snapped shut like jaws where he once stood.

Back flipping, Naruto reacquired his other target, landing behind him and lashing out with a kunai. The boy came back around, swinging his bladed arm and slicing the kunai in two, scratching the shinobi's hand. Resulting to hand combat, the whisker-marked boy huffed and shuffled around, ducking as the boy sent a kick at him. He retaliated by sending an upper-cut into the older boy's face, knocking him staggering back.

Growling, the boy with the auto mail arm lunged at him, lashing out with another attack. Naruto pivoted to the side, kicking out his front foot so that his opponent tripped over. Crashing face first, the attacker flipped back to his feet and, slapping his hands together, held a hand out and a spear suddenly shot out of the ground. Spinning around, the short boy lashed out, slicing Naruto across the cheek.

Yelping, Naruto staggered back, gritting his teeth. With his left arm, he reached under his sleeve and ran his hand across the seal he had tattooed under his wrist. A flash and a puff of smoke shot out from his sleeve, and when he spun around, lashed out with a spear of his own, with a red gauze cloth strapped next to the blade, slicing his opponent across the forehead. The boy yelped as well and staggered, but recovered quickly and took another stance, thrusting his spear up, meeting Naruto's tip to tip.

The two glared each other down for a few seconds, glaring into each other's eyes hard. Then, just as they were about to resume their fight, Chou-Un suddenly joined her comrade, back-to-back, holding her katana up as the big metal warrior she was fighting came along, wielding a sword as well. Within seconds, Naruto and Chou-Un were surrounded by the four again mysterious warriors, Ling and Lan Fan joining to box the traveling pair in.

Letting out a sigh, Naruto stood up straight, while Chou-Un remained in a defensive stance. Twirling his spear around him, it dematerialized in a puff of smoke, returning to his seal.

"Listen fellas, I don't know what provoked you to attack us in the first place, but we're not your enemies," Naruto said, holding his hands out, appealing to the four attackers. "This has all just been a big misunderstanding…"

Chou-Un nodded, while the four fighters surrounding them looked at each other, watching as the girl sheathed her katana and also held her hands up.

"We're just travelers from a different continent, exploring the world…"

"We stumbled across yours, and are in no way involved with anything to attract this much attention," Naruto continued.

The four of them thought for a moment, watching as the strange pair with unusual abilities stood in the midst of their four-corner box in. After a few minutes of consideration, they each lowered their weapons, Ling and Lan Fan looking over at their comrades.

"These two have very strange energy levels, particularly the cat-like one…"

"Cat?" Naruto raised an eyebrow, holding his hands up and imitating the claws of one. Chou-Un looked at him through closed eyes. After a moment of thought, she giggled, trying to suppress a big laugh when her thoughts came back to her. Naruto turned to the young Ronin. "What?"

"Now that I look at it… you do remind me of a cat…"

"Yes. The spiky haired boy there has more then one energy source inside of him. Not only that, but both of them are very strong," Lan Fan said. The other two newcomers looked over at each other, shrugged, and then turned towards their former opponents, now at a truce with them.

"So… where are you guys from?" the one in the armor asked, surprisingly revealing to the pair that he had the voice of a child, about the same age as Naruto.

"We come from a land ruled by shinobi… ninjas that influence the balance of events and are used as a prime military force," Naruto said, smiling at the boy in armor. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki; I'm a ninja… trained in the arts of stealth, martial arts and assassination. My friend over here, her name is Chou-Un; she is a wandering Ronin from the same lands as I am, trained in the arts of the samurai… a different branch of warriors from us ninja!"

"Oh… sounds very interesting," the boy in the armor exclaimed. He thumbed his chest proudly. "My name is Alphonse Elric; it's very nice to meet you!"

Naruto and Chou-Un nodded to him in greeting, before turning to the other, unnamed member of the four. The boy with the metal arm smiled at them and thumbed his own chest. "Pleasure! I'm Edward Elric, the elder brother and Fullmetal Alchemist!"

"Nice to meet you," Naruto said, bowing to him.

* * *

_**Later that day…**_

Naruto, Chou-Un and the run-ins soon put aside the events that had occurred earlier that day, and decided to have dinner together at a local restaurant. Of course, starved from the day's events, Naruto, Ling and Lan Fan ate like pigs, leaving Edward with a hefty bill, who had of course offered to treat the newcomers to a descent meal. Either way, when they were all done stuffing their faces, they all got down to talking.

Edward, Naruto and Alphonse became engrossed in a deep discussion with each other over where they came from, and talked about the lands and everything special about them. The blonde shinobi talked about his village of Konohagakure, the Land of Fire, its neighbors, and the basics of the things he had learned from all of his masters. Altering between people, Edward talked about Amestris and its neighbors, and also went into a detail about the people that have raised him and taught him too. When the young keeper of the Kyuubi asked the oldest Elric brother about his strange 'jutsu', as the whisker marked boy lightly put, Edward told him about Alchemy, and how it was all about Equivalent exchange, with the few taboos there were about it. Naruto understood this well, as there were also a few forbidden jutsu he was quite familiar with.

Also, when Naruto noted the fact that there was no chakra signature coming from Alphonse, and noting the absence of Edward's arm, the brothers then told him about how they attempted to use Alchemy to bring back their mother; human transmutation as it as called.

All the while, as the three boys talked, Chou-Un spoke with La Fan and Ling, with the fifteen year-old Prince hitting on the silver haired Ronin. Naruto's traveling companion politely nudged him away, saying she was 'interested in somebody else'. After which Chou-Un spoke with the two foreigners from Xing about sword fighting, where they received their training, and how they acquired their abilities to sense ki. Lan Fan then offered to teach her a bit, with Naruto also asking Edward whether he could learn how to use alchemy as well.

"Well…" Edward began, setting down his fork and rubbing his chin in thought. "You already are exceptional in close-quarter fighting, and obviously have the skills to survive. I guess I can give you a few pointers!"

Reaching into his jacket pocket, the Fullmetal Alchemist pulled out his notebook, with various tags and pages creased for later viewing. He handed it to Naruto, who also set aside his fork and knife for a moment to take a look at the book. Alphonse watched quietly as the shinobi flipped from page to page, with Edward smiling on proudly as the boy skimmed through it.

"In my travels I've taken many notes, especially on different Alchemistic techniques. It should be pretty straight forward to understand. It can definitely get you started," the teen proudly exclaimed, taking a sip of tea. Naruto smiled as he closed the book and tapped it with his finger.

"Do you mind if I get a copy of this… and maybe a couple of other books?"

"Sure thing," Edward said, leaning over. His look sudden became serious, as he looked the younger boy in the eyes. "But listen… you better not use this to make the same mistake my brother and I made or use it for selfish means. Understand…"

Naruto nodded, handing the book over to him. "This is simply something I'd like to learn, and I will take your experience to heart with it…"

"Good…" Edward exclaimed, leaning back and folding his arms over his chest. "If you want copies of basic alchemy and stuff made, then I know just the person you should see…"

Alphonse looked down at his older brother from where he sat across from him. "Wait… you don't mean…"

Edward grinned up at him. "Don't worry about it; I'm sure she doesn't have too much work on her hands…"

* * *

"SHESKA! WHERE ARE YOU!" Edward hollered through the piles of mile high books in the record department office. The amount of documents and books were in here meant that the small group had to make their way round like a maze. It also worried them, especially the Elric brothers, that Sheska could be lost in here.

"Oi! Sheska! Are you in here? Come on out!"

"Sheesh… what is it!" a female voice responded, her head poking out from a top of a stack of books they were passing. Looking up, Naruto, Edward and Al saw the girl sitting at the top of the pile, files in hand and a pen in her ear, indicating that she was a little busy. When she saw that it was the Elric brothers, she blinked, smiled and waved. "Oh! Hey you two! It's mighty nice of you to stop by!"

"Nice to see you too, Sheska!" Alphonse replied, before gesturing down to the spiky haired blonde standing next to him. "Uhh… if it isn't too much trouble… well… if you're not too busy…"

"Our cat-like friend here would like a little bit of help with something of your specialty, I believe!" Edward finished with a proud grin. Naruto frowned, glaring at Edward with a tick-mark on his forehead.

"Cat…"

"Sure thing!" Sheska exclaimed, taking a book at her feet and literally sliding down the pile on its incline. Getting to the bottom, she placed her stack of papers on a nearby, smaller pile and walked up to them, looking back at the stack she had just come down from, and dusting her hands. "Whoo… didn't know I could do that! So! Watcha need?"

"We need a copy of this!" Edward exclaimed, thrusting his book at the girl, who accepted it without a second thought. "…along with maybe a couple more books on basic, advanced and foreign alchemy! Not too much… enough to be able to put into notebooks like this one!"

Sheska, rubbing his chin, smiled and looked up. "Okay! I see… simple enough! I know exactly what you need. I'll have them done by tomorrow afternoon!"

"Great!" Edward exclaimed, placing his elbow on Naruto's shoulder and leaning against him, the young ninja looking back at the alchemist with a raised eyebrow. "That leaves us plenty of time to hang around!"

"So…" Sheska smiled down at the three boys, looking from one to another in turn, before glancing down at Naruto. "Who's your cat-like friend here then? Is he a fellow Alchemist you work with?"

"_Seriously… why does everybody here keep comparing me to a cat?"_ Naruto thought. Letting out a sigh, he smiled up at the young brown haired lady and waved politely. "My name is Naruto, I'm just touring the countryside with a friend, and I ran into these two…"

"Oh… well, it is a pleasure to meet you, Naruto. My name is Sheska!" the girl replied holding out a hand to him in greeting. Naruto shook hands with her gentlemanly, both of them sharing a kind smile. "So… where are you from?"

"I came to this country from over seas… quite a ways from here, actually…"

"Wow… a long-distance traveler! Well! It is so nice to meet a new face! All I see around here are army guys and officers… but I still enjoy my work!" Sheska exclaimed happily. "I am really grateful for it!"

"She sure is!" a stranger's voice joined the four, this one making Edward, Sheska and Alphonse jump, whereas Naruto just turned to the source of it. Unexpectedly, a tall man wearing blue army garbs, glasses and black hair spiked back, popped out from behind a stack of books, and walked right up to the group. Seemingly exasperated at the man's sudden appearance, the Elric Brothers rubbed the backs of their heads and greeted the man in kind.

"Hey… Hughes!"

"How are you doing, Lieutenant Colonel?" Alphonse asked.

"Oh… I'm doing just fine. Work's been pretty busy lately though, what with everything that's been going on around Central," Hughes stated, hands in his pockets as he smiled down at his three comrades, as well as Naruto, who was looking up at the man with great interest. Noticing the newbie, Hughes raised an eyebrow and leant over, getting a better look at the spiky haired blonde, analyzing him from his eyes to the whiskers on his face. The young shinobi leant away slightly at the man's proximity. After a few seconds, Hughes smiled and straightened up. "So who's the cat?"

Naruto fumed instantaneously. "CAT?"

"Oh uhh… this is Naruto," Alphonse explained, pointing down at the boy who literally had steam rising from his head. "He's a friend of ours. We're just showing him around the place…"

"Yeah, we just popped in here to ask Sheska a favor, you know… just to make a copy of my notebook so we can give it to our friend as a memento of his visit here to Amestris…" Edward continued.

"I see," Hughes said, looking back down at the spiky haired blonde. "A foreigner huh? So where abouts do you hail from? By the looks of your garb… I'd have to say… Xing!"

"Oh no… he's actually from overseas…" Sheska intervened, raising her right hand in pointing out this fact.

"Ahh! Now that's interesting. Well… Naruto… it's nice to meet you!" Hughes exclaimed, grabbing the boys hand and shaking it firmly and… to be blunt, rather frantically that it shook Naruto up and down rather awkwardly. The boy had to readjust his hat when the middle-ranking officer was done. "My name is Maes Hughes, and as always, it is a real pleasure to meet a friend of the Elrics, especially a dynamic individual such as yourself!"

"Uhh… yeah… it's a real pleasure to meet you…too… umm… Hughes," Naruto replied in a nauseous tone, his head still spinning from the shaking.

"That reminds me…" the Lieutenant Colonel began, reaching into his coat. Seeing the movement resembling one of reaching for a weapon, Naruto leapt back and reached for a kunai, but was once again surprised by the man pulling out a slip of paper and walking right up to him, holding it up to his face. Edward, Alphonse and Sheska sighed and shook their heads, knowing full well what this meant.

On the piece of paper, Naruto saw that it was actually a photograph, one of a little, brown haired girl around three or four years of age, wearing a pink and yellow dress, hugging a teddy-bear twice her size. The boy blinked as he looked at the picture, before it was lowered showing a grinning Hughes.

"My little daughter… Elicia! Isn't she adorable?" Maes Hughes exclaimed hugging the picture to him. "She is turning three this year, very, very, very soon! Oh! She is such an angel! And upon seeing this picture, I bet you just want to see her! Am I right?"

"Uhh…"

"I thought so! You look as though you've been traveling a while, so I tell you what! Why don't you come over to my place and stay the night! Now don't worry, I have a couple of guest rooms, the misses won't mind, and Elicia will be so excited having someone over to play with! It'll be fun! What do you say?"

"Umm… okay… I guess…"

"Great! I'll tell my wife to put the kettle on and to get the muffins baking! You will not regret this, Naruto!" Maes Hughes went on, the joy in his voice and the happiness in his step being obvious.

Edward and Alphonse sighed and leant in to the blonde shinobi, who was still busy readjusting his hat and trench coat.

"Don't worry, Hughes is a great guy," Alphonse said.

"Just… be nice and you'll have fun," Edward also said. Naruto scratched his nose, looking between the two Elric brothers.

"Is he always like this?"

It only took a second of thought from the pair, before a decision was made.

"Yes."

"Oh… I bet Chou-Un is going to love this?"

"I'm sure she will," Edward answered for him, turning his head and snickering.

Eventually, the Elric Brothers, Naruto and Hughes accompanying them, left the room, leaving Sheska to carry on with her work, but not before the blonde shinobi went out of his way to thank her for her kindness. Closing the door to the record department, the four started down the hallways of the building, now with the idea in mind to head on outside and get some much needed fresh air. Along the way, passing by a couple of other Alchemists and military personnel as they went along, Hughes glanced down at Naruto and smiled, the boy looking back up at him from under his straw hat.

"So… Naruto… are you enjoying your time here at Central?" the Lieutenant Colonel asked. The boy smiled and nodded.

"Oh yeah! It's a very interesting city… way different from any of my villages and towns back home. Heck… this place is so big!" Naruto said, making gestures with his hands to show this. "I'm surprised I haven't gotten lost yet. And the people… well… let's just say that overall, your culture and society confuse me."

"I can only imagine," Hughes snickered. "It's a long way from here to the nearest coast… you must have gone through hell to get through to Central."

"You have no idea," Naruto laughed.

"Hughes!"

Stopping and turning, the group turned to see another face coming down the hallway, under escort as well by two more other familiar faces that Edward and Alphonse knew the moment they set eyes on them. When Naruto turned to look, the first thought that came to him was trouble. The man wearing blue military garb with a matching coat draped over his shoulders and with white gloves in his pocket, and had black hair with piercing eyes glaring at them, meant that this guy had to be one higher up then Hughes or Edward. Accompanying him was a blonde haired lady with her hair done back, and carrying a few documents (Lieutenant Hawkeye), along with a blonde haired man chewing on a toothpick (Lieutenant Havoc), both of which were wearing the same military outfit as Hughes. The three stopped in front of the four, with Hughes sharing a friendly salute, and Edward just glaring.

"Well, well… isn't this a pleasant surprise, Colonel!" Hughes exclaimed. "What brings you down the hallway at this time of the day, Roy?"

The Colonel sighed and shrugged. "I just got off of a meeting with the Fuhrer. Nothing big, it just gets a bit tedious, with him getting me to move my staff around, and approve this and approve that." Looking down, Roy Mustang saw the Fullmetal Alchemist Edward standing beside a newcomer, supposedly a friend of his, with Naruto looking up at him in quiet observation. Blinking, the man pointed at the young shinobi in question. "Who's the cat?"

Okay, now at this point, Naruto was tired of hearing this. In fact, he had half a mind to rip the tongue right out of this guy. However, he just clenched his fists and lowered his head, hiding his gritted teeth and the killer intent blazing in his eyes. Edward laughed at the boy's depression and nudged him in the shoulder.

"Oh… you mean this guy!" Edward exclaimed. "This is my good friend Naruto; I've been showing him around the city and introducing him to the folks. Don't worry; he won't bite unless you step on his tail by accident."

"_Just keep pushing me… keep pushing me…"_ Naruto seethed.

"Hmm…" Mustang looked down at him with a raised eyebrow, a little suspicious of the ten-year-old. After a few seconds of analysis though, the man decided to push the issue of trouble aside, and just shrugged, smiling. "Well, it sure is good that you found a friend much smaller then you, Fullmetal. I bet it must have been very hard for you…"

This time, it was Edward's turn to develop a tick-mark on his forehead. Growling, the boy was about to tackle the Colonel, but was held back by his brother, who had little trouble restraining the boy as he yelled at his superior.

"WHAT ARE YOU IMPLYING? YOU IMPLYING THAT I'M SHORT! AAAARRRGGGHHH!"

The Colonel chuckled and he waved, walking round and past the group. "Well… it was nice seeing you again, Fullmetal. Give your cat friend a pet for me, would you."

"THAT'S IT!" Naruto shouted, spinning around and charging at the Colonel. However, upon pushing past Hughes, he was grabbed from behind by Alphonse and held in place. Now holding onto both his older brother and the young ninja, the armored boy let out a sigh and shook his head as Naruto and Edward spat out strings of curses after the Flame Alchemist as he walked away.

"_What a strange day…"_

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_

* * *

**Power levels:**

_Battle of Central Park_

**Naruto:**

Base: 160,000

Full Power: 280,000

**Chou-Un:**

Base: 155,000

Full Power: 270,000

_**Elric Brothers, Ling and Lan Fan:**_

**Edward Elric:**

Base (hand-to-hand): 130,000

Full Power (with Alchemy): 280,000

**Alphonse Elric:**

Base (hand-to-hand): 150,000

Full Power (with Alchemy): 280,000

**Ling:**

Full Power: 250,000

**Lan Fan:**

Full Power: 200,000

* * *

**_Author's Note:_**

For anybody who is wondering when Naruto will be returning to Konoha, it will be soon. I've already written up to Chapter 15 ahead of this story, and Naruto will be returning close to Chapter 18. He will not be as overpowered as everybody thinks, and there will be a lot going on, that I can guaratee. I just want to burn through his adventures as quickly as possible before having him return to Konoha and meet and get together with everybody else.

Oh, and the main reason I am having Naruto journey through the other worlds is so that I can get their villains involved. Basically he just meets with the good guys from the worlds he crosses, and when he returns to Konoha, he has the badguys following after him. basically after coming to these worlds for the first time, he won't return to them, only in passing.

Thanks for reading.


	9. The Next Steps

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_The Next Steps_

_**Late afternoon…**_

"ELICIA-CHAN!" Hughes exclaimed, swooping down and picking up his daughter in a loving hug, the little girl giggling and laughing loudly as her father cuddled her. Meanwhile, as Hughes greeted his daughter enthusiastically outside of their apartment, his wife Gracia watched from the doorway with a heartfelt smile, and Naruto, Chou-Un, Edward and Alphonse looked on with odd expressions on their faces. They all sweat dropped as Hughes smothered his daughter with love.

"Did you miss daddy? Elicia-chan!"

"Daddy! Your beard tickles!"

"Oh! Okay! Then I will tickle you some more!" Hughes exclaimed.

"Eeeeeek!" The girl laughed out loud, while the sweat drops and weird-ed-out looks on the four standing behind the overly loveable Lieutenant Colonel grew, as he hugged his daughter playfully.

After a minute or so of this show of affection towards his daughter, and torture towards the other four, Maes Hughes set down his daughter and formally introduced their newest guests. "Elicia, we have the Elric Brothers and two more guests joining us tonight!" he started, gesturing towards the four bystanders.

Hughes' daughter walked up to the four, and cutely looked over each one of them. Having already met the Elric brothers, she focused more on the two strangers. Naruto and Chou-Un looked down at her as she curiously looked them over. Then, with great confidence, pointed at each one of them in kind, starting with Chou-Un. "Angel…" she exclaimed, causing the Ronin to blush lightly at her comment. The silver haired samurai bowed to her in greeting, while Elicia pointed towards Naruto. "Cat…"

Naruto gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tightly, once again being referred to as a cat for probably the tenth time today. In all honesty, he was getting really fed-up with it.

"Cat… Elicia-chan… I am not a cat," Naruto began through clenched teeth and a forced smile, thumbing himself in the chest. "You see, I can talk… I have hands, feet and a face like a normal person. See…"

"But you have whiskers, so that means you are a people-cat!" Elicia replied affirmatively.

Naruto almost cried, bawling towards the ceiling with his hands rubbing his eyes, a pathetic display with animated tears spilling out of his eyes. "THAT'S EVEN WORSE!"

Chou-Un giggled, clamping her hand over her mouth to stop herself from bursting out in laughter, with Edward almost shoving his own fist in his mouth to do the same thing. Alphonse also found it funny, his armor trembling audibly as he suppressed his laughter.

Dragging a crying Naruto in, Chou-Un, Edward and Alphonse followed Hughes and his family into their home. Eventually all the laughter and crying died down, and soon enough, the four of them were treated to a lovely meal made by Gracia Hughes. Afterwards, Naruto and Chou-Un helped clean up, and when they were done, they were led to the bedroom where they would be spending the night. They got quite a surprise when they found Ling and Lan Fan in the guest room, with Ling passed out. Fetching them some of the leftovers, Gracia treated them as she would the guests, before leaving the group alone.

With Ling and Lan Fan setting out a couple of futons, Elicia stopped by to play for a bit, Alphonse, Chou-Un and Naruto entertaining her with stories, along with an act they performed with some of the toys she brought along. When it came to around eight Elicia had fallen asleep, and Maes came and took her off of their hands.

For the rest of the late afternoon, Ling, Naruto and Edward played poker, and Lan Fan and Chou-Un stayed up talking. After which, Edward and Ling went to sleep on the two available beds, whereas Lan Fan slept on the futon, and Chou-Un on the other, arm draped over her katana. The only ones who stayed awake for most or all of that night were Naruto and Alphonse.

Sitting on the window sill, one leg pulled up and eyes cast out over the sleeping city and starry sky, Naruto admired the views, and stretched out with his six, seventh and eight senses, feeling the warm heartbeat of the lands. He relaxed, looking down towards the streets below.

"Do you miss your home?" the child voice of Alphonse spoke, Naruto turning to meet the armored boy's eyes. The suit of armor was sat up against the wall, the boy within looking up at him through the visor. "Did you leave anyone special behind… when you decided to go on this journey of yours?"

The blonde shinobi took a moment to think, before smiling and looking Alphonse dead in the eyes.

"Well… yeah… I did. There was Teuchi, Ayame-onee-chan, even Oji-sama… heh. I guess there was a lot I left behind," Naruto replied, looking back towards the night sky. "But… back in my home village, I was always persecuted for being different… for something that everybody hated without limit. For that I was cast out… often beaten almost to death for it."

Alphonse paused for a moment of thought, wondering if the question he had asked was a mistake. But he was surprised when Naruto looked back with a big smile on his face.

"I'm going to change all that though," the shinobi said. "When I go back home, I want to bring with me the experiences of a lifetime, and the strength to gain everyone's acceptance."

The boy in the armor looked down at the floorboards at his feet, taking into consideration the words Naruto had given him. After which he then looked back up at the boy, his soul smiling. "The journey you are taking, and your purposes for getting stronger, is a good one. I feel that there is also something more to it as well."

The blonde chuckled and looked over to where Chou-Un was sleeping soundly, her sword clutched in her hands tightly.

"Of course, I not only do have a reason back at my homelands and village, I've also found a stronger one," Naruto replied. "I want to protect those precious to me, whom I love: Ero-Sennin, Baa-chan, Shizune-onee-chan, Gaara… and Chou-Un…"

"Do you love her?" Alphonse asked innocently, looking up at him. "Do you love Chou-Un?"

Naruto didn't need much time to think. When he answered, he said it out from the bottom of his heart.

"I do…" Naruto said. "She's one of those most important to me. In the time I've gotten to know her… I know I have someone else close to me whom I can trust and depend on. In truth, I've never met anyone as kind hearted and warming as her."

Alphonse nodded, holding his fist out to the young ninja, who looked at it in confusion. The armored soul of Edward's younger brother smiled inwardly. "Promise me that you will fulfill what you have set out to accomplish, friend…"

Naruto smiled and bumped fists with Alphonse. "If you promise me you'll fulfill your goals…"

"Agreed…"

The two boys talked throughout most of the night. But what was said already struck something deep within a curious listener.

Chou-Un, who had woken at the sound of Naruto and Alphonse talking, couldn't help but smile and send her affections mentally back towards the boy on the window sill. Curling up in her bed, and covering the blush on her face, her feelings for the boy suddenly sky rocketed…

* * *

_**The next morning…**_

Naruto and the gang bid farewell to Gracia and Elicia, thanking them for a lovely meal and a place to stay. With all their things packed, the group headed down to Central Command, where they had a meeting to keep. Ling and Lan Fan followed Naruto and Chou-Un's lead, with Edward and Alphonse permitting them entrance into the building.

As it turns out, the day would turn out to be another interesting experience for Naruto, for when they turned a corner, the blonde shinobi suddenly bumped into what he felt was a brick wall. Double-backing, the boy looked up, to see an eight to nine foot Sasquatch standing in front of him.

More curious then cautious, Naruto continued to stare in silence for the next minute or so, as the bald officer with the mustache and decoration of a major in the army stared back down at him. Looking back, the young shinobi noted that Edward and Alphonse had backed up at the sight of the man, looking a little worried, with Chou-Un, Ling and Lan Fan standing to the side with curious expressions in play.

Naruto turned back to the statue of the tall and bulky soldier, who lent over to get a closer look at the whiskered boy, with the ten-year-old shinobi leaning away, blinking in surprise. Suddenly, the tall man gave him a happy grin and picked him up in an unexpected, spine-crushing hug. Naruto was beside himself.

"OOOOOHHHH! WHAT HAVE WE HERE! GUESTS! HOW MARVELOUS! IT IS A PLEASURE TO MEET SUCH A FINE YOUNG MAN AND HIS FRIENDS TOURING CENTRAL COMMAND!" the man boomed enthusiastically, while Naruto's face turned pale then blue from blood circulation and air being cut off. The man pulled away, holding the boy out with both hands and shaking him, while he looked over at the rest of the group. "OH! ELRIC BROTHERS! GOOD TO SEE YOU!"

"Hello Major Armstrong…" Edward and Alphonse nervously waved.

In a blink of an eye, the big man swooped over to the pair standing a fair ways away for their safety, taking them into a hug, and unbeknownst to him, crushing them. Alphonse was okay, but Edward and Naruto were suffocating under the man's show of affection and greeting.

"YOUNG ELRICS, YOU TWO LOOK GREAT! KEEP TRAINING AND YOUR PHYSICAL FORMS SHALL BE AS FIT AND BEAUTIFUL AS MY OWN!" the happy alchemist exclaimed happily.

"Yeah… that's great, major sir," Alphonse peeped, while Naruto and Edward squirmed under the man's biceps. Chou-Un, Ling and Lan Fan were a little concerned for their friends' well beings.

Releasing them as quickly as he had swooped them up, Alex Louis Armstrong beamed down at the two shortest members beneath him.

At first, Naruto thought he was tripping, but he swore he could see pink diamonds sparkling around the Major's head. He shook his head clear.

"_Must be from being hugged by the guy… Geez… he's strong!"_

"Well now, are you going to introduce me to your new friends, Edward?" Major Armstrong asked.

Of course, not wanting to make the man spastic again, Edward went on to explain in brief details about their encounter, and of course, introduced the new comers politely. Having hoped to avoid another smothering, Edward only seemed to make the big man's passion escalate, and the group surrounding the man sweat-dropped as the soldier began yet another public display.

"Oh! That's amazing! A fine, gallant tale indeed!" the bald man yelled out with tears streaming from his eyes. Smiling brightly, he patted Naruto on his straw-hat covered head, the boy stumbling, nearly being knocked out by the giant hand of the Major. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Naruto of the Land of Fire!" He then turned towards Chou-Un and the pair beside her. "And of course, to you three as well!"

Grinning nervously, they waved, praying they didn't get hugged as well.

"Well! I have urgent business I must attend to! I will see you later then, Elric Brothers!" Armstrong said, waving to the group and continuing down the hallway. "So long!"

Edward, Naruto, Chou-Un, Lan Fan, Ling and Alphonse watched Alex Armstrong walk down the hallway. Once he was gone, the whisker-marked boy turned towards Edward with a raised eyebrow and a look that said 'WTF'.

"Who the hell was that guy?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, that was Major Armstrong. Don't worry about him, he doesn't bite," Edward exclaimed, stretching his back out, the sounds of cracking clearly heard. "He strangulates… (sigh)"

With Naruto and Edward staggering away, the group continued on, with Alphonse leading the rest of the way to Sheska's office. When they arrived, they didn't have to take time looking for her, and instead fund her immediately standing by the front desk, accompanied by a girl around Edward's age. The new girl had long blonde hair reaching her waist, wrapped in a ponytail. She also had green eyes, a notably pretty face, and wore the uniform of an Alchemist. Furthermore, she wore a bandoleer, and on her back sheaths, holding four swords, with two more on either side of them. They were long bladed, straight sabers with golden handle guards.

"Oh! Hey there Edward, Naruto… and…" she noticed Ling, Lan Fan and Chou-Un, who smiled at her in greeting, "… some… other… strangers. Hm! Anyway!" Picking up a couple of small pocket books from the table, the brown haired girl marched over to Naruto and held the books out to him, the blonde shinobi taking them into his hands and flipping through them quickly. "Here you are, Naruto! A present for you…"

"Hey, not bad!" Naruto exclaimed, looking at each one admirably. He noted the variety of alchemical seals, carvings, markings, theories and scientific theories in relation to their properties. It looked like everything he needed to get started. The whisker marked boy smiled and then looked up at Sheska, smiling brightly. "Thank you very much! I just don't know how I can repay you for your kindness!"

"Think nothing of it," the girl replied, adjusting her glasses.

As Naruto was checking on the books, he was suddenly confronted by the blonde girl. Edward and Alphonse didn't recognize her, but that didn't make them at all concerned. Chou-Un however was a bit on edge when the girl stepped up to the boy who was her friend, traveling companion and admirer.

The young officer glared. "So… you're the Naruto I've been hearing so much about." The designated party looked up, blinking in surprise under his straw hat.

"An immigrant from a country across the seas, illegally entering the country, stowing aboard a supply trailer, getting into a fight with an Alchemist of the State, destroying Central Park and disturbing the peace," the girl read out, a grin on her face. "You seem like a pretty interesting person… traveling all the way out here to cause so much trouble.

The blonde shinobi raised an eyebrow, with Ling and Lan Fan looking at each other in confusion. Chou-Un, suspicious of this girl, stepped forward.

"Excuse me but… may I ask who you are?"

"Lieutenant Mai, Officer of the Central Armed Forces," she replied, glancing at the silver haired Ronin, before turning her attention back to Naruto, who was pocketing the books for safe keeping. "I am the top swordsman in my class of four hundred, youngest graduate from the military academy at age fourteen, and future leader of this nation."

"Wow, impressive," Naruto said with a smile. "I plan on becoming leader in my village to… after I gain some more experience of course…"

"Really?" Mai asked, smirking. "Well then… you will have to forgive me for this…"

In a blink of an eye, the girl drew her right sword and immediately slashed out at the boy in that same blink. The young shinobi had only a fraction of a second to react, leaping backwards and drawing his tanto blade from behind him, slashing back out at her. The blow from her blade against his propelled him out into the hallway, slamming him into the wall with a loud thud. Gritting his teeth, the blonde shinobi looked up, leaping and rolling to the side quickly when the girl suddenly appeared in front of him again with lightning speed, and lashed out at him.

Rolling across the hallway floor, he quickly got back up and ran, the girl giving chase, drawing a second sword from her scabbard. Chou-Un, Edward and Alphonse ran out into the hallway, while Ling and Lan Fan poked their heads out, following the commotion.

"What the heck is going on all of a sudden?" Edward asked loudly.

"Apparently, Naruto has just gotten himself into trouble," Alphonse replied. "Just who is that girl?"

"I don't know, but she sure is a pretty young lady," Ling exclaimed, holding his hand above his eyes as he scanned the hallway, watching Lieutenant Mai attacking Naruto. Lan Fan frowned inwardly, disapproving at her master's comments.

Growling, Naruto leapt from left to right, backing up as the girl slashed out at him with her duel swords. Catching one with his own blade, he batted it aside and attempted to move into to attack, only for the girl to rebut and slash his right arm, cutting his coat and drawing blood. Quickly shuffling back, moving about to not give the girl an easy target, the boy then back flipped and landed feet first against the ceiling. Sticking to it, he dashed forward, tossing shuriken down at the girl beneath him. She blocked each one, keeping pace with him and backing away, making sure he stayed in sight.

Swiftly, the by dropped down, tanto drawn and lashing out at her in mid descent. Mia gritted her teeth and blocked his blow, staggering back. She recovered quick and charged, slashing out at him over five times in less then a second upon engagement. Naruto blocked these, keeping speed with her, before side-flipping and crashing through the closed window, arms folded over his chest.

Landing on the pavilion outside, Naruto got back to his feet and turned around; looking back to the window he leapt through. Mai gave chase to him as expected, crossing arms over her chest and slashing out at the boy. The young shinobi charged back at her, dropping and sliding right under he open legs. He got back up when he was behind her and rushed her back, bringing his tanto around and lashing out.

Mai spun around instantly upon losing sight of her opponent, stabbing out with her sword. She caught Naruto across the cheek, and he slashed her across the shoulder. Wincing, both of them stepped back a few, dashing around each other in a clockwise direction before reengaging. Naruto attacked Mia as she slashed out at him furiously, her blades being a blur to the young shinobi's eyes.

Sparks flying, Naruto forward flipped over her when one of her attacks came in to wide, and he struck downwards with his small blade. All he met was the metal of her other sword, as she slashed over herself to defend. He landed behind her again, getting on her blind side. Reaching into his sleeve, he tossed three kunai at her, only for the fifteen year old to block the barrage with ease, batting them aside.

Frowning, she rushed him, bringing her swords around for a quick attack. The spiky haired ninja thought on his feet, quickly leaping around her as she lashed out at him, and tossing another barrage of throwing knives at her. She ducked and rolled under them, landing on her feet, pivoting and rushing at Naruto again.

The boy noted her linear movements, similar to that of Killer Bee's, only more unorthodox and nimble. He responded, leaping straight into the air, Mai following him with her eyes. She watched as the boy slapped his hands together, forming a few hand signs, before taking in air into his lungs.

"_Fire Style: Grand Fire Ball Technique!"_

He unleashed the technique, a massive sphere of fire coming straight down at the girl. Shocked, she leapt out of the way, just in time to avoid it as the attack drove straight into the ground and detonated, sending her tumbling away.

Mai recovered; taking a crouched stance and looking back at the massive crater and flames still flickering within it. Just then, she saw the smoke and small fires part as a gust of wind came out of nowhere, followed by Naruto as he charged out of the center of the crater and at her, a visible, blue ball of energy warping in his right hand.

"RASENGAN!" he shouted, thrusting out at the girl.

The Lieutenant brought both her swords up, crossing them to block the attack. He thrust it at her with a yell of effort, the impact causing an exploding of wind to erupt around the girl as she took on the force of the attack head on. Growling, she pushed back as the attack dug into her swords, the violent winds tearing up the ground around them. Eventually, she was thrown off her feet, spinning with the wind as Naruto successfully took her down.

However, regaining composure in mid-flight, she flipped to control her descent and landed, skidding across the courtyard. Upon attaining another fighting stance, she brought her swords up, only to find them warped together, twisted and effectively useless. She looked down at them in surprise, before glaring up at the boy as he grinned at her, the little damage he had suffered at the beginning of this fight matching the bruises from his attacks, cuts and burns she had sustained now.

Frustrated, she tossed her two swords aside and drew another from behind, and burst into movement. She charged him, Naruto returning her assault with his own. He jumped left, rolling and knocked her sword arm as she lashed out, causing her to stumble. Hitting the ground on both hands, he kicked out at her feet, knocking her off balance and to the ground. She responded by roundhouse kicking at his hands when she hit the dirt, but he leapt off the ground and back to his feet. She did to, lashing out just in time to meet his next strike.

They clashed blades again, Naruto attempting to get past her striking range and into her blind spot. He shuffled, leapt and jumped around as she struck out at him, countering her every strike with his own, only to meet her saber blade on each attempted attack. There was one instance when she missed him in an attack, he managed to slash her across the upper chest with his wind blade, extending his chakra through his tanto, and effectively cutting her, and catching her by surprise. However, she responded by effectively driving her saber into his left shoulder, knocking each other back.

Staggered, Naruto dropped his short blade and grabbed the blade impaled straight through arm, biting back the pain. Mai was effectively winded, dropping to her knee after she staggered away, clutching her chest.

"Dammit… you're good," she growled.

Naruto grinned. "Thanks. So are you… but you have a lot to learn still," he exclaimed. _"Although… this girl could give Shizune-nee-chan a run for her money. She's much stronger and faster in terms of combat…"_

Grinning, the girl grabbed the two remaining swords behind her. "Nevertheless, I don't intend to lose!" Sprinting forward immediately, she drew her swords, slashing out.

Naruto was still smiling at her, despite having a sword stabbed straight through him, he watched as she ran him down again, yelling out as she slashed out with both blades. But then, just as her swords were about to cut into him, his form suddenly became transparent and blurred, and the girl stumbled through an afterimage of him. Screaming, she fell forwards, face planting the ground.

The boy laughed, appearing to be standing right behind her. "Although… your skills in combat could use a little work, after all, I'm no ordinary opponent."

"Damn you!" Mai growled, looking up, nose bleeding. Clenching her fists, she picked up one of her sword and spun to strike, only to stop when she met the very tip of her own blade in Naruto's grasp, poking right between her eyes.

She stopped, looking up to see the boy with a bleeding left shoulder, really his own serious injury, and a smile on his face. That confident look just got her blood boiling.

"It was nice to meet you, Lieutenant Mai," the young shinobi exclaimed, twirling his sword around and driving it into the ground right in front of the girl. Putting his hands into his pockets he turned on his heel and walked off, picking up his tanto on the way back to the window he had crashed through earlier. Edward, Alphonse, and everyone else who had been watching were a little overwhelmed by the fight, and were worried about the repercussions.

Mai glared after him, cursing herself for not being able to beat him. But she hasn't given up yet, after all she was never taught the meaning of the word 'quit'. The Lieutenant dusted herself off and got to her feet, grabbing the sword impaled in the ground and yanking it out.

"_It's not over yet…"_

* * *

Naruto left Central City with all smiles. Patching himself after his scuffle in the command building pavilion was easy enough, but having to say good bye was a little too much. He had made friends with Edward, Alphonse, Ling and Lan Fan, as well as Hughes and his family. It was difficult for him to part ways with them, but eventually he had to. With Chou-Un by his side, and presents given to him by his new family and friends made in Amestris, he promised to see them again in the future, and left the city by train.

"You know what," Chou-Un said from her seat across from Naruto, as they both watched the city vanish into the distance through their open window, replaced by the wide landscapes of valley, farmlands and rivers, "I would really like to come back to this land one day, and see the changes in the people's lives in our absence."

"Yeah," Naruto nodded, smiling as he propped his elbow on the window ledge and placed his chin on his fist. "We did get a lot out of this experience… Chou-chan…"

The silver haired girl blushed and tried to hide it, propping her knee up on their seat and resting her katana against her shoulder. She looked at Naruto, with admiration, respect and love; all of it reflected in her eyes as she looked him up and down.

"I can tell… that you have gotten stronger, Naruto-kun," Chou-Un exclaimed happily. The boy looked at her, still smiling.

"Really?" The girl nodded affirmatively. Standing up, she stepped across and sat down beside the blonde. Linking her arms around his, she leaned against him and rubbed her cheek against his shoulder affectionately.

"In more ways then one," the girl sighed.

Naruto smiled and laid his head against hers, Chou-Un pleased at his return of affections.

"You're getting stronger too. Can't wait to test that," the young shinobi replied.

"Looking forward to it," the girl said. "But make it blades only… no tricks or fancy jutsu involved."

"Aww…" Naruto mock whined. "That takes out all the fun…" The girl giggled and shoved him aside.

"What? Scared?"

"No… I'm just so used to using them though. It's like second nature to me!"

"Next chance I get, you and I are going to sit down, face-to-face, and teach each other what we want to know. Here's the deal," the girl began, holding up her right hand and bringing up one finger, counting, "I'll teach you the art of how to manipulate ki and use advanced kenjutsu styles, and you in turn teach me wushu martial arts and taijutsu. I want to increase my speed and hand-to-hand combat skills, if I'm ever disarmed."

The whisker-marked boy smirked, taking her raised hand and shaking it gently. "It's an agreement then…"

Chou-Un grinned and leaned up, kissing him on the cheek, the wandering shinobi blushing and blinking in surprise. "Sealing the deal… think of it as a pact…"

"Not getting a little too close to your former enemy and rival now, are we?" Naruto asked.

"Let's just say… I really… kinda… very much… like you," Chou-Un exclaimed softly, opening her eyes and revealing her stunning green orbs to her crush. "Perhaps we can share a tent next time?"

"Heh…" Naruto grinned, looking up. His eyebrow raised a little as he looked up towards the ceiling. "I know you have been following us since this morning… you can come out now…"

Chou-Un gave him an odd look, thinking where this suddenly came from, when she jumped in her seat when a sword impaled the cushion right between her head and Naruto's. Looking across, she saw Lieutenant Mai from earlier in central command sitting across from them, sitting comfortably against train seat. Dressed smartly for travel, and fully armed with all her swords sheathed and propped up beside a traveling bag at her side, save for the one driven into their seat, and two side-arms holstered on her utility belt, the young officer grinned and glared across at the slightly surprised Chou-Un, and the calmly smiling Naruto.

"Don't think I'm letting you get away that easily. I demand a rematch!" the blonde girl sneered. "If I'm going to be a leader of a country one day… I need to prove myself in battle against an opponent I have yet been able to defeat!"

"I see," Naruto said smugly, looking over the girl in front of him. "Planning on traveling with us back to my country?"

"You bet your fine-ass I am!" Mai exclaimed, withdrawing her sword with an audible jerking sound, feathers flying. "Along the way, maybe I can teach you a thing or two about handling one of these blades… and maybe you can teach me how to use those techniques of yours! Equivalent Exchange, as so my former Commanding Officer always told me!"

Naruto nodded. "Done…"

"Huh?" Chou-Un looked at her traveling companion, albeit surprised, while Mai sat back, arms folded and smirking. "You can't be serious, Naruto? This girl tried to skewer you!"

"Hey…" the boy shrugged. "It happens. Besides…" Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his little Alchemy pocket books he got from Edward, turning to the first page. "This is the start of a whole new chapter in our lives. I don't mind having a few more people tag along with me on this journey… so long as we learn something every step of the way…"

The silver haired girl groaned, glaring at the smug looking girl across from her. _"If you try anything funny, so help me… I will cut you!"_

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_

* * *

**Power levels:**

_Battle of Command Headquarters_

**Naruto:**

Base: 160,000

Full Power: 280,000

**Chou-Un:**

Base: 155,000

Full Power: 270,000

**Lieutenant Mai:**

Base (close-combat): 180,000

Full Power: 270,000

* * *

**_Author's Note:_**

Don't get me wrong with the story, with the crossovers, the main intention was to pit Naruto against some of the villains from those worlds just to add some spice to the story. I have big plans when he gets back to Konoha for the wave arc and Chunin Exams, so stick around if you want to find out.

And to others who are confused, no the other good guys from the crossovers (like Edward Elric) won't be helping Naruto, it's just him and the ninja from the Naruto universe and the girls he meets on his trip. Of course, I didn't originally have Naruto meet the Elric brothers, but I had to give him some sort of connection to alchemy, which he learns later of course. Oh, and P.S, Naruto isn't as strong or overly powered as I make him out to be. I'm not going overboard like Masashi Kishimoto with Sasuke in the anime series (now that's over powered). For anyone interested in reading lemons later in the next chapter, stay tuned. (I wanted to put a major storyline in along with the lemons unlike a lot of other fics that just focus on the sex bits, but I can guaratee sex scenes in the next chapter to come). Things are starting to get hot...


	10. Passionate Night

**NARUTO**

_**Forbidden Chronicles**_

_Passionate Night_

_**Four Nights later…**_

_**Late afternoon…**_

It was nightfall, and Naruto, Chou-Un and Mai had already left the country of Amestris way behind them. That night, the trio decided to set up camp under the stars in a large clearing beside a small lake, taking this time to rest and catch up from a long journey.

Almost immediately upon joining the group on their journey, Mai began learning more about the pair she had joined. They were odd that was for sure, coming from a foreign land she had never heard of being one. Firstly, they dressed oddly; unlike the formal garments or merchant outfits she'd seen the people of central wearing. Secondly, they wielded very strange weapons, some of them recognized as Xing weapons, whereas there were a few others that she didn't know and was fascinated by them. Thirdly, they ate oddly, using two sticks instead of a fork, knife or spoon. This is what she got from first impressions when the three sat down around the fire and made fish for dinner.

Notably, Naruto and Chou-Un questioned Mai on her choice of outfits, wondering whether the clothes she wore were a bit uncomfortable. A rather poor choice of words made by Chou-Un was that it made the soldier girl look like a boy. Mai responded in typical outrage and anger, tackling the girl on the other side of the cooking fire, and wrestling and brawling with her in comical fashion. The tussle allowed Naruto to take a few more pieces of fish for himself before they decided to stop an hour later.

Once they were all full, and the fire was dimmed, they all went to their separate tents. The moment their heads hit the pillows, they were all sound asleep. Well…

…some of them anyway

Naruto was sound asleep, lying on his back with his hands behind his head. It was perhaps one of the only times he ever slept, and he was thoroughly enjoying himself. Comforted in his singlet, shorts and wrapped in a blanket under the sheets of his tent, he felt he had nothing to worry about.

That was until a shadow past his tent, and entered it.

Dressed in only a white singlet cut above her abdominals and a pair of underwear, Chou-Un snuck into Naruto's tent, slithered under his blanket, and wrapped her arms around him. She sighed, affectionately nuzzling the boy and attempting to fall asleep beside him.

She only managed to get a good half-an-hour of sleep with him before Naruto woke up, and found himself in a gentle yet vice like grip. Blinking as he stared up at the tent, he then looked down at his side to see Chou-Un lying against him, sleeping soundly.

The boy freaked out and tried to scramble away, only to have the girl wake and hold him down and, even more so, closer to her.

"GAH! Chou-chan! W-What are you doing?" the boy asked, looking down at the girl, a fair bit concerned.

The girl restrained him, taking his wrists and pinning him. She straddled him, opening her eyes and staring down at him with her green orbs, while he stared back up at her with his blue sapphire eyes. In spite of their peculiar situation, Naruto didn't fail to notice the streak of red across his friend's cheeks.

"N-Naruto-kun," Chou-Un began, leaning down closer to him, their breaths mingling in the atmosphere of the tent.

For the young shinobi, things were getting hot and frankly a little tight from his pint of view. He squirmed uncomfortably underneath the silver haired girl. However, the girl, though not as physically strong as him, had managed to catch him off guard, and now had him at her mercy. Not that the boy was putting up much of a fight, he still found the situation a bit perplexing, reminding him a lot from a scene in one of his master's erotic books.

The silver haired girl inhaled his scent, moaning in satisfaction before smiling down at the boy, still blushing.

"Make me yours…" she whispered.

"Huh?"

"Please…" the girl whispered, bringing one hand down and coming to trace first his face, then his chest, his torso, and then the lining of his shorts. Naruto complained very little when the girl moved in, pressing her knee up between his legs, rubbing gently. "I know you want it, Naruto-kun… and I want you…"

She leaned in, closing her eyes and readying her lips. Naruto gulped silently, as the girl swooped in slowly, and captured his own lips in a tender, soft kiss. The boy returned it gently, at the same time marveling at her softness and her scent.

However, just before things could escalate any further, the entrance to Naruto's tent flew open, and Mai stepped in.

"Naruto-kun…I…WHAT THE!" the girl shouted, double-backing when she saw Chou-Un on top of the blonde, pinning him, both of them looking at her in surprise.

When they saw the young Amestris soldier, they saw that she was wearing a plain, light blue robe, and black lingerie underneath it. They could see the lace bra and panties since her robe was partly open. She clearly had something planned for the shinobi herself, and Chou-Un knew that it was supposed to be for an 'extended' visit.

Seeing the pair staring at her, the girl looked down at her body, and shrieked. She covered herself fully with her robe and glared up at them, red in the face and gritting her teeth.

"What?"

"Uhh… hi there… Mai-chan…" Naruto exclaimed sheepishly, waving with his free hand. "I like your uhh… clothes…heh."

Mai growled and looked at Chou-Un, who was smirking at her. Once again noting the female Ronin to be on top of the boy she planned on sleeping with as well, the girl stomped over to them and grabbed Chou-Un by the back of the shirt.

"Oh no you don't!" Mai yelled tossing her out of the tent and following, drawing a blade she kept concealed in her undergarments.

The same instant she was thrown was the same instant Chou-Un managed to snag a kunai from Naruto's nearby weapon holster. Upon landing hard on the ground and leaping back to her feet, she took a fighting stance, meeting Mai as they circled each on beside the camp fire dimly flickering in the night.

"You were thinking of bagging him, weren't you?" Mai growled.

"Apparently, you were thinking the same thing!" Chou-Un replied calmly, eyes closed as usual. Mai blushed furiously and rebutted as best as she could.

"Yeah… well… I'm older… so I should go first!"

Chou-Un smiled. "That was a weak response…"

The two of them then engaged in combat, a rather small confrontation outside the tents. Since they weren't using the weapons they were accustomed to using made them both handicapped, and because of their similar strength levels, put them on par with one another. Naruto crawled to his tent's entrance and watched the fight for a few minutes. When they both disarmed each other and began wrestling on the ground, tearing at each other's clothes, he decided to intervene.

However, due to the sight and his primal response to it in his lower regions, he decided against it, and decided to sit it out. He sighed and laid there at the entrance to his tent, tapping the ground impatiently as he watched the pair punch it out.

"_Well… isn't this just turning out to be a pleasant night…"_

* * *

_**The following couple of weeks…**_

That earlier night, Naruto had become completely aware of the fact that Chou-Un and Mai were competing for his attention. In terms of affection however, well… they were doing their best to actually get closer to him.

Days after that tent incident and after a few more miles of traveling, Naruto had become the target of both women. Night in and night out, the two competing young girls continuously attempted to sneak into his tent, but always caught each other outside, and fought it out until dawn, keeping Naruto awake for fear of having his tent cut down, as well as himself. If that weren't enough, it was the following month that would have the blonde shinobi beginning his daily lessons and training sessions from Chou-Un and Mai. And of course, during which, the two girls would alternate between lesson times, and getting close to Naruto. Moves they would usually pull would often be sitting closer then usual during breaks, resting against him, accidentally trying to kiss him, and more inappropriately, attempting to grope him in parts of the body he was well aware of. However, each and every time one girl would attempt to get close to him; the other would usually show up and physically drag the boy away.

Aside from the constant hovering of the two girls over him during the day, the training sessions and lessons he was learning weren't bad at all. Chou-Un, whom he had known for a fair few months now, was very much a kindred spirit with his own. Her training sessions were rather enjoyable. At first she went through with him breathing and meditative techniques in order for him to harness his ki, which he soon began putting into practice on the field. Soon, he was successfully beginning to manipulate air currents around him using ki, as well as being able to increase his speed, strength, and manifest visible energy in his hands. Soon, he was attempting to use this energy in more inventive ways, such as being able t hurl masses of it in combat or turn them into blast streams.

Mai's lessons however were a little more dramatic. Unlike Chou-Un's gentle nudges, the former military officer was a real tyrant went it came to training. She first got him to work on increasing his physical fitness, as if he didn't get enough of that already. The lieutenant wanted to get him into proper shape in order for him to handle a blade without the use of chakra or ki. He needed to learn how to use a blade when he was out of chakra, and could still fight. After every work out, with the girl standing with her arms folded over him, she would then move into basics of her Western sword play. Even here she didn't take it easy on him, preferring to use unsheathed weapons on him. His first fight with her had him go back to camp with stitches and a limp. She repeated this till he was at least able to keep up with her, one sword against one.

Naruto quickly learned the lesson that different cultures had different ways of fighting, and that learning from these were so much more difficult then to what he was used to and already knew. It was like he was a kid again, and learning these things from scratch. This made him think of just how tough Chou-Un and Mai had it, during their years as apprentices to a higher person.

In exchange for their lessons, Naruto would then pull each of them aside, and teach them in the arts of fighting he knew well. His close combat was far more nimble and faster then theirs and he aimed to train them the way he was trained. Chou-Un picked up on it quickly, but Mai was still a little impatient, having to drop her principles of military corps fighting styles to meet his standards. Furthermore, Naruto then began teaching them how to manipulate chakra, so that they could pull off some of the basic moves he could. It took a while for Mai to grasp the concept of tree climbing.

It took her a week before she even made it to the top of the tree. Water walking would follow later onwards.

In and out of his training sessions, breaks, and him teaching the girls, Naruto would burn through the books on Alchemy the Elric Brothers had given him back in Amestris. In them, he was able to pick up on a lot of the theories quickly, beginning to put them into practice. He started with the basics, in order for him to get used to the principle of Equivalent Exchange. Within two weeks, he was writing seals into surfaces quickly, and learning how to attack with the earth, water and trees. He would then later begin researching and creating his own shortcuts, in order to skip the tedious task of actually writing the seals and circles before attacking in each instance.

As much as Naruto was getting a kick out of learning new things, he still had the problem involving Chou-Un and Mai. No matter how hard he tried to keep the peace, they just wouldn't stop arguing or fighting with each other. Heck, they didn't even try to find a resolution before each confrontation. Instead, the two of them continued to glare at each other hatefully, and Naruto was tired of having to cope or deal with it.

The boy had to think of a solution…

* * *

One day, Naruto found himself sitting by a small river that ran through the area, the trio having set up camp not too far from it up on higher ground, having the need to stop for a couple of days and rest their legs. The evergreen forest they were trekking through was a real bitch, and they were wondering when it was actually going to end.

Sitting on a large rock, the blonde shinobi was carefully carving into one of his ninja gloves a circular equation he managed to pick up from the notes Edward gave him. He summarized that if he combined wind manipulation with fire, as from the basis of his ninja training, he might be able to create an attack sufficient enough to be used as a last minute resort in field combat, when there wasn't enough time to form hand seals.

Biting his bottom lip, he finished the circle and the odd symbols within it. Utilizing his scroll seal markings he practiced on his training trips with Jiraiya and the theories of equivalent exchange, combing both cultural theories into one, he summarized an effective and difficult equation to wind current manipulation. Naruto also designed it so that it was near impossible for anybody else to copy or mimic and that it corresponded with the security seal he had conveniently tattooed onto his chest, which would appear whenever he was concentrating chakra at his center.

Slipping the glove on, Naruto checked that it fitted him right and that it would not back fire on him. Testing for it to be sure, the boy held his hand out, extended his fingers and aimed it at the trees. Focusing his chakra into his palm, there was a sudden blast of wind that shot from it, the invisible attack striking the trees and punching a gaping whole through the forest, shattering wood and cutting through the thick undergrowth.

Raising an eyebrow, Naruto then moved his hand around, before flicking it towards the water, snapping his fingers. The sparks creating from the material ignited in the warping air currents, and simultaneously exploded along the river. What came out from the small blasts afterwards were a few dead fish, small craters along the shore, and steam clouds.

Before the boy could further test his new ability, he suddenly heard the thunder clap of a weapon discharging somewhere close, causing him to look over his shoulder.

Curious and cautious, Naruto got up and traced the sound. His trek led him a bit deeper into the forest, the camp site still in view behind him, as he found the source of the noise.

Standing five hundred feet away from a target marked on a tree, Mai was practicing her marksmanship skills with her Mauser C/12 pistol side arm. The girl was putting space between each shot as she fired on the red and white target, hitting it dead center each and every time. She was obviously engrossed in her gallery of fire to notice Naruto standing to her right, leaning against a tree with his arms folded and watching her out of interest.

When she stopped ten shots later when her pistol ran out of rounds, Mai let out a heavy sigh and lowered her weapon. Discharging the shells, she reloaded it, cocking the slider and raising it to take another shot. However, she sensed a presence, and turned to see Naruto watching her.

Seeing the by looking on with a smile, Mai grunted and holstered her weapon.

"What do you want?"

"Nothing, really," the whisker-marked boy said, getting up off of the tree and approaching her. "Just wanted to see what all the racked was…"

"Well, don't be too concerned. I'm fine," the girl replied, turning towards him. "I can take care of myself."

Naruto noticed the outfit she was wearing. Her blue army slacks and black boots matched the black tight muscle shirt she wore; the bandoleer she was wearing over that carrying her duel pistols, magazines of ammunition, and a sword on her back. Clearly she was always prepared for a fight.

"You may say that, but I can see that something is bothering you," Naruto said, walking up to stand a couple of arm lengths away from her. "You're awfully tense, your pulsating ki levels are indicating you're overly stimulated, and… taking note of the high bands in your voice frequency levels that you are very… aggravated. So… care to fill me in?"

Mai visibly flinched, but she turned away, arms crossed.

"You worry too much."

"Aside from training and helping other people, I make it a habit of mine. Being a ninja means I have to be weary of everything and everyone. Making discreet observations is a part of my lifestyle…"

"Well… it's a very strange and absurd way to live," the fourteen year old officer girl replied, glaring at him. "You live to high a strung…"

"And you're not right now?" Naruto musingly replied. "To put it simply… I just want to make sure everything is alright with those closest to me. I hate seeing a person unhappy about something and leaving them in that state… I wouldn't be able to sleep well at night if I didn't do something about it…"

Mai looked away, blushing slightly. "You care _way_ too much. That can get you into trouble…"

"No it won't," Naruto stated, hands in his pockets. "Because I won't let any harm, or let anything bad come to the people I care about! That I can promise you…"

The blonde girl looked back up at Naruto, considering what he had said and looking him straight into his eyes. She had only known him for just a month, give or take a few days, and even when she was just getting to know him, she had grown fond of his company. Not only did she look towards him in admiration of his kindness, compassion, and willingness to put other people's happiness ahead of his, and wanted to get to know him, Mai also wanted to be close to him, because she got this strange, buzzing feeling whenever she was around him.

And it felt good.

"Do you… care about me too, Naruto?" she asked, rather timidly with a little blush on her face. Her question was quite a bit out of her usually serious character, which surprised the boy quite a bit.

But instead of questioning that, the young ninja smiled and nodded. "You're my friend, Mai. I care about you a great deal…"

Smirking, Mai closed her eyes. But then, in a flash, she drew her sword and slashed out at him, Naruto acting quickly on reflex as he leapt back to avoid it. He was surprised at just how fast she actually was, even though he had faced this speed before in their earlier fight. She was still a very difficult opponent to deal with in close combat.

Pulling his hands out of his pockets, he then began avoiding another series of furious strikes, as she forced him back. Frowning, he drew a kunai and blocked a few strikes, catching one and grappling with her. However, the girl caught him off guard, using her handle guard, she knocked into the kunai ring at the end, slashing it out of his hand and stabbing at him. She aimed for his shirt's collar, and impaled it against the tree behind the boy.

Naruto grunted as his back slammed into the tree and he was pinned by her sword. Swiftly, the girl walked right up to him, their height matching as she pressed her body fully against his, and ran her leg up and down his. Placing her hands on his chest, she played with the fabric and stared deeply into his eyes, a bright blush on her face as her breath mingled with his.

"I want to be more then friends with you… Naruto-kun," Mai whispered, feeling hot under her hair. Naruto, at this moment, was feeling more then a little heat, but also a little pressure. The girl knew it because she could feel it, and she wanted it. "I want you…"

"I've been hearing that a lot lately," Naruto replied, trying to rationalize the situation, or at least reason his way out of this. Of course, with his arms pinned, and legs unwilling to work with him, he tried to go with it. "Mostly from bad guys and people wanting to kill me… then there is you of course…"

Mai smiled and placed a finger over his lips, silencing him. "You talk too much," she exclaimed, quietly. Slowly, she reached down to his pants, and slipped a hand in through his waist belt, feeling around his underwear. The boy sucked in air when her hand grazed him. "Boy… you sure are tense yourself. Do you need some relief, Naruto-kun?"

"Desperately…" Naruto replied, gulping.

The girl giggled and leaned in, removing her hand from him, and tenderly kissing him on the lips. The shinobi didn't fight it, but returned it none the less. Mai ground into him, wanting to feel as much of him as possible as they both tasted each other. They moaned into each other, things starting to escalate a bit more.

However, before things could get anywhere else, a streak of light flashed through the air, Mai and Naruto reacting quickly and ducking, just as the tree they were up against was cut in half. The pair leapt out of the way, Mai drawing her side arm and Naruto just standing straight up as Chou-Un appeared on the seen.

As the tree crashed to the ground away from them, the silver haired Ronin stood atop of the stump of what was left of it, sword drawn and green eyes shining dangerously as she glared at the blonde haired girl. The young lieutenant returned the girl's glare with a smirk.

"Jealous?" she asked.

Chou-Un didn't say anything. Instead, she sheathed her sword and hopped down from the tree stump. Marching towards Naruto, she took his hand in hers and walked him away from the clearing. Mai lowered her pistol as she watched the pair walk away.

"Come, Naruto. It's time to practice more on your ki manipulation skills…" Chou-Un said.

As soon as they were out of sight, Mai frowned and holstered her weapon, thinking of another plan of getting at her Naruto.

* * *

That night, Naruto had the great pleasure of actually getting to sleep peacefully. Though aware of the competition between the girls at trying to get at him, he wasn't that worried, knowing that no harm would really come to him, as he was the prize. Still, there was the issue of trying to get the two girls to stop fighting with each other. This was proving to be a very complicated puzzle, especially after today.

However, after only getting about an hour of sleep, just like the nights beforehand, the entrance to his tent opened, and in tip-toed Chou-Un, dressed only in her undergarments. Silently, she swooped down to the boy lying on top of his covers, and got onto her hands and knees, hovering above him.

Her presence was quickly detected, as Naruto's eyes flew open. He saw the angel of a girl gazing down at him, smiling lightly with a brilliant shade of red on her cheeks, as her green eyes gazed into his blue eyes. The young shinobi smiled at the sight of her, instead of recoiling at the sight of her like he did at first.

Of course, this has become a regular occurrence for him…

"Hello, Chou-chan… back again?"

"Yes… Naruto-kun," she replied, leaning down and without any hesitation whatsoever, kissed him full on the mouth. The boy did not hold back, and began kissing her back as well, the two of them sharing a strong and passionate embrace, as their bodies moved against each other. In a flow of hand movements dancing over the other's body, the two young teens allowed their bottled up lust out, and poured it all into this kiss.

Their tongues entered the battle, opening their mouths to the other and allowing them entrance. It was the most intimate either of them have ever gotten with each other, and it was about to become more so as Naruto and Chou-Un began feeling under the clothes of their partner. The silver haired girl's hands explored the ninja's well toned torso and chest, while Naruto's ran over her back and sides. Though they were both still young teens, puberty had a way of influencing and arousing their curiosity. An eleven year old Naruto and a twelve year old Chou-Un were in the process of learning more and more about each other, and they still were.

Chou-Un moaned as Naruto's hands massaged her skin and muscles as he explored her, the girl removing her lips from his to look down into his gorgeous eyes, while he looked up at her in kind.

"This time… will you permit me?" she asked.

"Of course… but only if you want to?"

"You have my answer," she replied, leaning back down and beginning again, eyes closed as they passionately made out.

Slowly but surely, Naruto's hands began exploring more around the young girl's front, down her lower back, and to her buttocks. He gripped her there firmly as she ground into him, their tongues fighting a prolonged duel. How they managed to hold their breath for so long was as big a mystery as love. Their strong partnership and strange friendship had blossomed to the point where now, they can throw aside any barrier or obstacle blocking their way, and fully give themselves to the other. Like it was said, both of them have unanimously agreed to take it all the way now.

Chou-Un slipped her hands under Naruto's shirt, and pulled it over his head, tossing it to the far corner of the tent, leaving the shinobi showing off his magnificent build. The girl definitely had to admit that martial arts did wonders on the body. That and his strenuous exercises made this boy a sight to behold.

Stopping for a brief moment, Chou-Un removed her own top throwing it away and whipping her hair around, so that it hung seductively over her face and down her back. She smiled lustfully down at the boy, while he looked up at hr in awe of her own wondrous features. Her body looked as though it was already in her teen years, with a bosom that matched her height and curvaceous form. Her tanned skin developed from their days at sea with the Straw Hat gang, made her a goddess in Naruto's own tent.

Smiling as Naruto looked her over, Chou-Un then proceeded to kiss him again, only to pull away a little. The young by, remembering some of the lessons he had learned from his master's Icha Icha novels, decided to try out some of the moves to pull. He used the opportunity of her closeness and brief time her lips spent away from his to pull her in slightly, and catch a whiff of her scent, blowing on her ear, and whispering sweet nothings to her. Chou-Un moaned when he gently nuzzled the ridge under her ear and bit it playfully.

She then proceeded to trail kisses down his cheeks, to his neck, lingering there a bit before moving to his chest. There, the girl took her time, resting her head against it and marveling at his build. The silver haired girl ran her hands up and down his sides, deciding to take it slow with the boy the first time, at the same time Naruto ran his hands through her hair, smiling down at her.

Chou-Un then moved, reaching the teen's shorts. Noting the large bulge underneath the cotton, the girl giggled and nuzzled it playfully, the boy moving a bit so to feel all of it, finding a very strange and good feeling from the feel of her cheek. After coaxing a small groan out of the boy, she then removed his shorts with her teeth from the waist band, pulling it all the way down to his knees and throwing them away.

Apparently went Naruto slept in shorts, he went free bird. Chou-Un was pleasantly surprised when she saw the boy's fully naked form when she knelt up to get better scope of her lover. Licking her lips the girl then reached down to remove her panties, only to be stopped by Naruto's hands.

"Let me…" he exclaimed, the silver haired samurai giggling as Naruto removed her panties himself, clumsily of course, his hands shaking with nervousness and excitement.

After throwing her under wear away, Naruto then took the girl by the arms and laid her down where he once lay. Placing her head on his pillow, and the rest of her on his comforts and blankets, placed his right hand on her cheek and gazed into her eyes. Both of them smiled as they began a long staring contest, searching each others souls through their windows, and relishing in the warmth they created between each other.

Being naked for the first time together is a new feeling for everyone. It's an opportunity for the couple to express their most heartfelt desires, whether with words or through silence. Naruto and Chou-Un's loving embrace meant more to them in this moment then any before or those that were to follow. They spent time looking into each other's eyes, taking in the other's scent, and running their hands slowly over the other, becoming familiar with their lover's body.

Then, after what seemed an eternity, but was about ten minutes to them, Naruto and Chou-Un leaned in, sharing a tender kiss, before either one pulled away.

"Do you want to… try that?" Naruto asked, gesturing a little awkwardly. Chou-Un smiled and shook her head.

"Maybe later," she replied. "It's my first time. This is a really special thing for me. I don't want to ruin it. Let's just… stick with what we know… or what we think we know…"

"Okay…" Naruto replied with a smile.

Taking a few seconds to adjust and perhaps take a breather, Naruto prepped his hardened member near her entrance, Chou-Un spreading herself wide enough for him. She looked down between them briefly, blushed a brilliant shade of red, and then looked back up at her partner.

"Do you think it will fit?" she asked, noting the seven inches worth prodding at her. Naruto shrugged.

"Only one way to find out," he replied. His look then became a little bit more serious. "Are you ready?"

Chou-Un gave him a kiss in response, her passion growing, as she wrapped her legs around his waist, and allowed him to slip into her. She pulled him in, and he pushed in, their combined efforts drawing sweet moans from both of them from this new and heavenly feeling. At first, Chou-Un felt a bit of pain, letting Naruto know by digging her nails into him. The boy stopped, knowing full well through physical action what she meant, and stayed like that as the girl got used to him. After which, she signaled him by relinquishing his grip, and he once again.

Together, the two of them went with it, Naruto moving with her as they made love for the first time. They expressed it through quiet moans, groans, and murmurs, the two of them remaining like that through most of it. The blonde took Chou-Un from above with her beneath him, with her running her hands over him as her breathing came out rapidly. She bit into his shoulder to stop from crying out in passion.

Eventually, after Naruto had pummeled her enough from above, they switched. Clumsily, Naruto and Chou-Un rolled over, trying not to hurt the other, until Naruto was lying beneath the young Ronin, and Chou-Un was on top. Together, they kept in sync with each others movements, experimenting and learning together. The silver haired girl rode him, grinding, bouncing and changing positions and posture to get the best out of their time together. Naruto would go along with this, sitting up and embracing her, helping her to move, allowing her to bounce, or making her move.

When they sat up against each other, chests pressed, and the two embracing in the night air filling the tent, Naruto whispered into Chou-Un's ear.

"I love you…"

"I love you… too… Naruto-kun!" Chou-Un whispered loudly, clearly trying to suppress her screams and moans. Naruto picked up the speed slightly, the girl suddenly throwing herself back onto the comforter and Naruto began taking her from above her again. She moved her hips in time with his, their centers slapping against one another. The blonde shinobi leaned over, placing his hands at the girl's sides and passionately kissing her, Chou-Un returning it.

When they parted lips, Chou-Un cringed. "I… I think… I think I'm going to…" she began.

"Go on Chou-Un… come for me," Naruto whispered, remembering words spoken from Icha Icha. If he had learned anything, this was the moment of climax, where the girl felt she was reaching her limit. Strangely enough though, he felt he wasn't there yet, even after supposedly going at this for forty-five minutes already.

After a few more thrusts into the girl, Chou-Un felt it, a heat exploding from inside of her and out. She bit her teeth and held back a scream. Naruto kept her from letting it out, clamping his lips over hers, and both of them kissed deeply. At the same time, the whisker-marked boy felt warm moisture dampen his crotch area, but he didn't pay much attention to that. All that mattered to him at this point was Chou-Un's well being and happiness.

After dropping down from her all time high experiences, the silver haired Ronin looked up at Naruto and smiled. Sweat dousing her forehead and more dripping down her body, with a bit seen from her partner, she nodded to him, running her hand through his hair.

"Thank you… Naruto-kun…"

The boy smiled back. "A real pleasure… Chou-chan…"

Suddenly, the entrance to the tent flew open, and Mai stepped in, surprising both Naruto and Chou-Un. The blonde girl stood at the entrance, dressed in a bath robe, and her hair let down and loosened. Without a word, she stood there glaring at the pair, looking at the state they were in. The pair stared back from where they lay, the silver haired Ronin a bit scared and still in shock, while Naruto just looked back silently.

After about a minute of just standing and staring, Mai closed her eyes, looking away.

"I see you've made your choice… fine," she said, huffing. "I'll leave you two alone…"

She turned on her heal, storming out of the tent. Unseen by Chou-Un, Mai had tears streaming out the moment she turned her back on them, but the silver haired girl knew that she was deeply hurt.

Before Mai could even make a run for it from the campsite, a sharp, yellow blur landed in front of her, blocking her pathway, a half-naked Naruto standing there. Dressed in shorts, he proved to Mai just how much faster he had gotten. Stopping, the girl frowned and turned away, trying to run again with tears still pouring from her eyes, but was halted when Naruto's arms wrapped around her.

"I have made my choice, Mai," Naruto whispered into her ear, placing his chin on her shoulder as he hugged her from behind.

"B-But…" Mai whimpered, for the first time since meeting Naruto showing a completely new emotion he never expected from her. The girl, enclosed by emotional and mental defensive barriers she had put up since her time at the military academy, continued to hold them up as she was pulled into the boy's warm embrace. "W-Why pick her over me? WHY! Is it because of me, Naruto?"

Naruto just stared at her quietly, watching her tremble as she cried, cradling her in his arms at the same time.

"Is it because I'm not as open or as free spirited as her? Or is it because I am _not_ her?" she continued, pouring out her feeling towards the other girl. "Sure… I'm serious and strong like her… if not, then I can be if I wanted to… but… I…I don't smile, or show as much compassion, or express my feelings as well as her, or am in any way like her! Everything she can show on the outside… a kind heart and a warm smile… I can't do that! It's not me! I can never bring myself to be like that!"

"Mai…" Naruto began.

"Alright!" The girl spun around in Naruto's arms and looked at him. The blonde shinobi got a good look at her, an expression of hurt and love all mixed into one, with tears streaming down her cheeks from her shimmering eyes. "Since this may be my only chance to say it, I will! Naruto! I…I…I love you, Naruto! I… love… you! The moment I met you back in Amestris… I felt something inside of me light up… a spark… a flame… a warm feeling! I couldn't describe it… and it scared me! That prompted me to fight you the moment I saw you, to get rid of you… and that feeling! B-But… after a while, I soon realized it wasn't something bad. So… that's why I followed you, to be close to you, to travel along side you, and keep feeling that warmth. I felt I had to be with you… to protect you, to help you… to see you smile…"

Naruto continued to stare, absorbing everything the girl said to him. He saw Mai shake her head, rubbing the tears away, before looking back up at him.

"It… it happened so fast…" Mai said. "I know it's unexpected. I… just had to let you know. B-But… how can you love me… when you are clearly in love with Chou-Un? You've known her for so much longer… and you've only known me for a month. I know I can't compete with her…for your love… I just wanted you to know how I felt…"

Mai tried to leave, wanting to get out of Naruto's sight, knowing that by crying in front of him, made herself appear weak before him. However, she couldn't move, because Naruto still held onto her. She shut her eyes and tried to look away from him, to stop looking at him, because she knew she wouldn't be able to stop the tears. But in spite of all her efforts, the blonde shinobi took her chin in his hand and turned her towards his face.

Unexpectedly, Mai felt the undeniable sensation of his lips pressed against hers. She thought she was dreaming for a moment there, but when she opened her eyes, she saw that Naruto really was kissing her. Not reacting beyond surprise or disbelief, the girl recovered from the shock that hit her, and began returning the kiss, feeling her legs growing weak under his touch and embrace.

The girl moaned as their kiss was prolonged through the night, the dim light of the fire burning beside them and their shadows danced in its light. Then, after a minute or so, Naruto broke his kiss with her and smiled at her, seeing Mai looking back at her, curious and dazed at the intensity of his kiss.

"Remember… when I said that I hate leaving a person I love hurt or sad," Naruto said, rubbing his thumb over her cheeks, wiping away her tears. "And that I care about those closest to me… well… I meant what I said. I care about you just as much as I care about Chou-Un. I love you both equally… and for that matter… I care about both of you equally. It would kill me if I chose one of you over the other, and left the other sitting on the sidelines, broken hearted. Don't think I will just leave you alone… because I won't…I promised that I wouldn't…"

Mai gazed into his eyes as he stared back, his voice sincere as his voice spoke the full and honest truth. Upon hearing this statement, the girl sprouted a smile, her cheeks red as she fully responded to his words, and looked upon his smiling face. She leaned into him and hugged him, embracing him and resting her head on his chest.

"You promise…"

"I swear it," Naruto said, pulling back and looking down at her. "The only question is… are you willing to share my love and your love with Chou-Un?" The blonde girl looked up at him, blinking. "I'm sure she wants you to accept her, just as much as you want me…"

The girl looked down again, taking this into thought for a moment. She then smirked and looked up at the young shinobi. "If I can be with you… it doesn't matter. I can share…"

"Good," Naruto replied, taking her by the shoulders and leading her back to his tent. "Because I want you two to get to talking and settle your differences…"

He opened the flap for her, and allowed her to walk in, with the young ninja following after. The moment Mai stepped in; she was met with an unusual and strange sight, with Naruto standing beside her with a curious smile on his face. What they stepped into was certainly a surprising sight, of Chou-Un on her hands and knees, getting pounded from behind by one Naruto, and a second Naruto being given a blow job by her. The two clones were really taking a step up with the silver haired girl, who took both ends in completely.

Pulling the clone's cock out of her mouth for a brief moment, the girl licked her lips and looked up at the clone, grinning. "Give it to me… Naruto-kun!" she exclaimed, catching her breath in that instant before taking the eight inch member into her mouth again.

The real Naruto chuckled, watching on in amusement. "Even though it's our first time… you have to give me points for creativity…"

Mai watched the sight before her for a minute or two, tilting her head as she watched positions shift and Chou-Un sitting on one of the clones, riding him while having her breasts massaged from behind, that clone kissing and nibbling on her neck. It was a very interesting experience, and Mai was getting turned on just watching it. She smiled and looked towards the real Naruto.

"I want what she's having," Mai said, Naruto looking back at her, blinking. "Only I want three…"

The real Naruto grinned and rubbed the back of his head. "Ah… sure thing, Mai," he exclaimed, before gesturing over to Chou-Un's threesome. "How about you join in first… then I'll honor your request…"

"Done!" The blonde girl looked back towards the orgy, ripping off her robe, and taking off her bra and panties before any more words could be uttered. Then, in a blink of an eye, Mai joined in the fray, taking one Naruto clone away from Chou-Un to the side and starting things off with a make out session and a blow job. Of course, the silver haired samurai was caught a little bit off guard and was disappointed at having her other man taken away, but couldn't put thoughts to words as she was so engrossed in the sensations of being pounded from below. She decided to put it aside and just enjoyed the ride while it lasted.

"Oh Yeah! Naruto-kun! Fuck me! Please… give it to me! OOOOooohhh!" Chou-Un moaned out.

Mai on the other hand was now really getting into this, as it was her first time too. Having watched Chou-un, she attempted to copy the other girl in pleasing the clone Naruto, altering on the shinobi's member from licking, to sucking, and even trying to deep throat, but decided against the last one when she gagged on it. Instead, she went to practicing a sucking technique.

The real Naruto smiled, watching from the side as the two girls experimented with the clones. Eventually, he decided to get in on the action, and producing another two clones, hopped back into this one. While one clone went to Chou-Un, he and the other copy went to join Mai. The silver haired girl was pleased to have another Naruto, and ordered that one to stand by her. When it did as ordered, she began sucking it off again, while continuing to ride the other Naruto.

Off to the left, Mai was now trying to position herself comfortably over the clone lying beneath her. Having still one more step to take, she was very nervous at the enormity of the clone, and was a little worried that it was going to hurt a lot. However, the clone suddenly sat up and stepped aside, Mai letting out a complaint before coming face to face with the real Naruto. The boy smiled at her and kissed her passionately, before laying her down on the bed. Moving over her, he gazed down at the blonde girl, as she looked up at him.

"Let's make your first time be with the real me," Naruto exclaimed. Mai nodded and took in a deep breath of air, readying herself.

"Do it…"

Naruto obliged, and entered her, marveling at the feel of the girl's insides as he penetrated. Mai groaned, biting back cries and tears at the pain she felt. However, after waiting a bit for the stinging to subside, she allowed him to continue, and soon enough, he was thrusting into her slowly, and she was grinding into his each thrust.

The young blonde shinobi decided to take it slow with his other partner, worshipping her body just as he had done with Chou-Un, who at the moment was altering between giving blow jobs to the two Naruto clones. Mai of course, was in a state of pure bliss. She never thought that sex was like this, as she had heard from stories from other soldiers in her unit (of course, uncalled for) that their sex lives were kind of dull. However, now that she was making love herself, with a boy she admired and loved more then anyone else in the world; it was an unbelievably pleasurable experience. The girl was literally crying out in lust, joy and pleasure.

"OH GOD! YES! NARUTO! THAT FEELS SO GOOD! PLEASE! MORE!" she moaned loudly, running her hands up his back. "GIVE ME MORE! HARDER!"

Naruto did as ordered, and began moving faster in and out of her, now pounding into her. He had to say, in spite of it being her first time; she had great control of her inner muscles. The sensations he felt were amazing, and he knew she was experiencing similar feelings.

Across from them, Chou-Un was now trying something a bit new, a sixty-nine position with one clone, both of them on their side, while the other clone massaged her breasts from behind her, sandwiching her.

Mai let out a cry of passion as her very first orgasm hit her, and she soaked Naruto's crotch. The real shinobi grinned at her as he pulled out, letting the blonde girl rest underneath him. After which, she sat back, wiped her sweaty brow, then made a motion with her finger for the other clones to come to her. They did so, and standing on either side of her, she began soaking both of them off, while getting on her knees and wiggling her ass at the real Naruto.

"Come on, Naruto-kun!" she exclaimed in a begging voice. "I want it…"

Naruto sighed and shook his head. _'My goodness… guess I'm going to have to pull an all nighter with these two…_" the boy thought, well aware of the third scene from the first Icha Icha book.

He walked up to Mai, and entered her from behind, the girl crying out in passion at the entry. Chou-Un, meanwhile, was also being taken, this time with her legs wrapped around Naruto's waist as he stood there, pounding into her on his feet.

'_Hope Kyuubi doesn't mind the racket…'_ he thought, sparing a glance at the necklace on top of his folded gear in the corner of his tent.

* * *

_**Meanwhile…**_

Inside the necklace, Kyuubi was sitting on a bunch of giant cushions in the middle of a small valley, next to a lake, forest and desert on all sides, and light cloud cover overhead. This all seemed to be localized all inside of the small pear at the end of the piece of string that usually hung around Naruto's neck.

The giant fox was lying atop of the pillows, sleeping comfortably, with its tails wrapped snugly around her. It was then when loud moans, screams and cries of love making hit her ears, which twitched at these sounds.

Groaning, the fox awoke, glaring up towards the ceiling, where she saw through the transparent barrier of her confines the sight of a bunch of Naruto clones all packed together and pounding on the two girls he was traveling with. Both Chou-Un and Mai were sitting in the same group, the two of them making out with each other as they were taken by two separate clones, while the others paid tribute to their bodies.

Kyuubi growled and reached up with her front paw, fisting it and pounding on the crystal surface, even though they wouldn't be able to hear her.

"_**Hey! Keep it down out there you brats!"**_ she growled.

Shaking her head, she laid her head back down and watched on, giggling when she saw the Naruto clones begin making out with the girls.

"_**I've heard of mating on mass, but this is ridiculous…"**_

* * *

_**Back in Central, Amestris**_

Deep underground, underneath the Central Command building, there sat a massive room made up of pipelines, cables, and constructed completely into a dome. Metal walls and frames held all the concrete and stone into place, with similar materials making up the main foundations of this dark abyss of a room. To put everything into perspective, it was a pretty depressing room, with one of the only light sources coming from a couple of candles and a lamp sitting on an oak desk, beside a stone throne strung with cables, wires and pipes.

Sitting in that very throne, was what appeared to be a man dressed in white robes, a mysterious and eerie figure that cast a very cold shadow across the room. He had a rather thinly outward show; pale wrinkled skin and white hair, his possible age making him look to be about eighty years old, when in fact he was over twenty-thousand years old.

In his reclines seated position, the man tossed aside his book and looked to his left from the shadows of his seat. Almost as if they were summoned telepathically, a dozen or so figures suddenly emerged from the darkness. The first to appear came out of casted shadows of tentacles and shapes, giant red eyes enveloping the body of a child, who strolled into the light carefree. The boy wore a buttoned up shirt, shorts and a vest, his short brown hair shadowing murderous little eyes and a devious grin. A figure accompanying this satanic boy walked in alongside, dressed in formal military robes, his numerous badges and adornments on his garments giving him that appeal of a high-ranking official, was armed with a sword at his side, an eye-patch on his left eye, and a bushy mustache, making him look very distinguished.

The others to form the circle consisted of a rather voluptuous female, a young lady wearing a black dress, had long, silky black and rather divine hair, and a gorgeous facial complex, her delicate looking hands adorned with long gloves that went up her arms. Fourthly a short, bald and fat man, wearing spandex, had large arms, and a big mouth, however moved with little difficulty despite his size. There also stood a pair of shorter, almost teen figures, one of them taking a seat on a large pipe, this one wearing leathery, revealing clothes, and had long green and spiky hair, masking a feminine boyish face and figure. The teen standing next to him/her, was a figure similar in appearance, long brown hair spandex shorts, a shirt, and had sickly yellow skin, accept for a right arm and left leg, which looked relatively normal. He looked to be around twelve, whereas the older teen looked to be around sixteen. A seventh figure was another woman, wearing a long brown dress with brown hair, had fair skin, and seemed very passive in her movements and appearance. Behind her stood an enormous man, with bulky muscles, chains clasped to his wrists, wearing spandex, and had stringy black hair, falling over a stoic and chiseled face. A ninth figure stood away from the group, wearing leather pants, boots and a fur collar vest and sunglasses. The man was tall and fair muscular in appearance, and he seemed to stride around with his hands in his pockets. He looked at the others out of boredom and disdain, before looking towards the man in the center throne.

"What's up…dad…?" the sunglasses wearing man exclaimed.

"My children… a situation has just come up that I require a few of you to tear away from your duties here in this country to run a little errand for me in another," the man in white stated, in a gruff and calm like voice. "Though this next job may seem minute, I assure you it does me some concern. It was not until just now I was hit with the full scope and realization of what this issue may bring us."

"Oh… what would that be then, Father?" the green haired boy sitting on the pipe exclaimed, throwing his hands behind his head and smiling.

"I know I have plans set for this nation and its human population with good use for them in the foreseeable future, but it'll take some time before it comes to full fruition. Just several days ago, I detected what could possibly be a future problem for us traversing about above us," the man continued, looking towards the various figures standing around him. "I sensed a very powerful individual enter this country… a person carrying a mass of energy in one spot, far beyond the energies of a philosopher's stone, even my own… perhaps even greater then the very power I myself seek."

"Interesting," the little boy beside the military figure spoke up, a voice baring a mixture and blend of several, giving it a very spooky distinctiveness from the others. "Can such a person with that kind of power truly exist?"

"Probably, but we cannot be completely sure," the vixen female in the black dress continued in place. "Are you sure you sensed correctly, father?"

"Perhaps your mind is wandering a little, old man?" the glasses wearing man spoke up, smirking. "Maybe you should rest for a bit?"

"My senses… are still finely tuned and accurate, my son," the white bearded man spoke, directing his attention to the one speaking ill about him. "What I sensed was nothing I had ever perceived before…"

"So… what is your plan then?" the old man with the eye-patch asked, hands behind his back. "What do you intend to do to get rid of this… problem?"

"I want you to go, retrieve this individual… and bring him to me, so that I may uncover the secret behind this strange and enormous power," the man said, resting his head on his hand, arm keeping his head propped up. "I have strong faith in you… my children."

"Who are you going to send then, Father?" the boy in the back asked, raising an eyebrow in question.

It didn't take much time of thought, in which the man seated in the throne looked up and around at the shadowy individuals surrounding him.

"I would send you, Pride… but unfortunately, you cannot leave this country, as you are bound within the circle and would die if you were to tread outside of it," the old man pointed out bluntly. "King Bradley must remain here, in order to keep control and watch over the military, as well as the sacrifices. I must also keep Gluttony, Juliet Douglas Sloth, and Envy around, for support and preparations. Also…recruiting Kimblee and requesting his assistance to add to the final touches to the transmutation circle would be of good use. Because this individual may be incredibly difficult to bring in, I will send Lust, Wrath, Greed, and Sloth to capture this person… and will send assistance if need be."

The man in the sunglasses grinned, holding up his hand and clenching his fist, cracking his knuckles. "Heh… this might actually turn out to be quite fun, old man!"

"Tsk… yeah!" the boy standing beside Envy smirked. "Heck… I might get a kick out of this opportunity…"

"Lust shall be leader for this job. Track this individual down, and subdue him in any way possible," Father stated, closing his eyes. "The day of the eclipse is drawing nearer… so be quick about it…"

_**TO BE CONTINUED…**_


End file.
